


Not So New Jersey

by vcg73



Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, April being a star, Because Kurt needed more wins in his life, Kurt Hummel & Santana Lopez Friendship, Kurt being a winner, Kurt on Broadway, M/M, Rachel Berry & Kurt Hummel Friendship, Rachel being a Brat, Santana being a good friend, kadam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-18
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:33:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 26,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26519812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vcg73/pseuds/vcg73
Summary: As Kurt winds up his first year in New York, a chance meeting with a Broadway star pushes his life into high gear.
Relationships: Adam Crawford/Kurt Hummel
Comments: 9
Kudos: 104





	1. Good News

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2013 Kadam Big Bang - before I knew how anything past mid Season 4 was going to turn out. 
> 
> Also written because I liked April Rhodes and consider it a crime that she had virtually no interaction with anyone except Will Schuester after her first appearance.

A beautiful summer day was dawning in New York, cloudless and mild with a soft breeze wafting through the maze of glass and cement structures that made up the heart of this great city.

Inside a tiny one bedroom apartment on West 45th Street, an errant sunbeam ventured in through the apartment's sole window, striking its sleeping occupant square in the face. The man grunted, accustomed to such intrusion on his day off, and just rolled over in his bed, shifting a few inches to escape the unwelcome light, only to find his way blocked by a second body. With a sniff of surprise, he blinked open sleepy eyes and then he smiled as consciousness caught up to him. How could he have forgotten that his boyfriend had spent the night?

Kurt looked so peaceful in sleep, his face half buried in a soft pillow that was trapped between his cheek and his raised right arm. His cheeks were rosy with slumber and his thick chestnut hair was adorably tumbled. One lock was drooping down low enough to touch his eye lashes and Adam reached over to brush aside the errant strands. Kurt's eyelids were twitching and a small smile curved his full red lips, suggesting that he was dreaming of something pleasant. At Adam's touch he instinctively snuggled in, the arm not trapped by the pillow reaching out to tug him closer.

Adam kissed the sleeping face. Light pecks anywhere he could reach from this slightly awkward angle. 

Kurt woke with a low laugh. "That tickles," he mumbled, his lashes fluttering as he opened his eyes and smiled at Adam, giving him a closed-mouth peck on the lips. "Good morning."

"Good morning, darling. Did you sleep well?"

"Like a baby," he replied, his eyes drifting closed again.

Sighing with contentment, Kurt freed his other arm and shifted closer, wrapping both arms and a leg around Adam's body. Neither man was clothed beneath the covers and both gasped when their morning arousal came into direct contact. They held each other, kissing deeply while their bodies rocked together, no urgency to the action as they caressed one another, taking their time and enjoying this rare opportunity for leisurely morning pleasure without the intrusion of work demands, school schedules, or inconvenient roommates.

"I love this," Adam said after a time, when both of them lay smiling and satisfied on their shared pillow. "Having you in my arms as I awaken; being able to make love to you at will."

Kurt kissed him, then added a second affectionate kiss to the tattoo of a rose with a heart at its center that rested just below Adam's shoulder. "Me, too. I wish I wasn't still finishing up the last few credits of my freshman year. Rachel has been making me super jealous bragging about her summer vacation, but at the same time I'm so grateful for yours." He sighed, resting his head on Adam's shoulder as the other man shifted to lie on his back. "I'm really going to miss you when you go back to England."

For a moment, Adam froze, wondering whether he should spill his news now or wait until a better time. Then again, what better segue was he likely to get? "Well, actually," he said slowly, holding the word out for a few beats to get Kurt's full attention.

Sure enough, Kurt popped up like a prairie dog, resting on one elbow as he looked down into Adam's smiling face, his blue-green eyes full of hope. "What?"

"My application for the Masters Degree program has been approved," Adam told him, a wide grin breaking out as he spoke. He had been waiting for weeks, but the faculty and staff at NYADA tended to do things on their own schedule, with little regard for the needs of their anxious student body. "The final project I presented for my Bachelor's last month caught their attention and they feel that I am, quote, "A bright light on the NYADA horizon, and an excellent candidate for our honors composition course". They really believe that I'm going to make it as a songwriter one day, Kurt. I applied for the necessary extension to my student visa and it arrived yesterday along with my acceptance letter."

Kurt threw himself forward, hugging Adam and muffling a sharp squeal of excitement into his shoulder. "Oh my God, Adam, no wonder you were in such a great mood last night! Why didn't you tell me? I am _so_ proud of you! Some of the best composers on Broadway graduated from the NYADA masters program. Even Grammy winners! And selfishly, I'm so happy that you're going to be around for the next … how many years does it take anyway?"

"Three," he said. "At least for the program I'm attending. The acting and dancing programs are both two years, but I'll be taking a number of those classes as well. I'd still like to be on the stage one day, but as it stands you and I should be graduating at about the same time. How do you feel about that, classmate?"

A delighted laugh bubbled up as Kurt began kissing Adam with excited fervor. "That ***kiss*** is ***kiss*** so ***kiss*** amazing ***kiss***. You are so getting laid for this!" Clambering to his knees, he fell across his surprised boyfriend's body in his rush to get at the bedside drawer.

Supplies secured, Kurt rolled them both over with such eagerness that they nearly toppled right off the bed. Seeing the half-impressed, half-alarmed look on Adam's face, he started laughing. "Sorry, but it's not every day we get news like this. I intend to celebrate!"

"Oh, I'm all for that," Adam chuckled. "Just don't kill us before we get to the good part."

Kurt's eyes sparkled as he went back to expressing his pleasure with his lips. "I think you'll survive ***kiss*** _un petite mort_ ***kiss*** _mon amour_. ***kiss*** _Ou deux_ ***kiss*** _Ou trios …_ "

Adam sighed deeply, arching into his loving touch. "Ah, Kurt, you know the language of love makes me utterly helpless."

Grinning wickedly, Kurt hitched his eyebrows. " _C'est ce que je compte sur_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not speak French so if Google Translate has let me down, please feel free to send a correction so I can fix it! It's meant to say, "I think you'll survive one 'little death' my love, or two, or three…" Then "That's what I'm counting on."


	2. An Old Friend

Two weeks later, both young men were still riding high on the news that they would, all being well in their relationship, have a few more years together. The remaining members of the Adam's Apples had been thrilled and delighted to learn that their leader and friend would be sticking around for a while as well.

A general atmosphere of celebration hung over the couple, and Kurt could feel in his bones that life was on an upswing and that some further good thing was about to happen. He could not explain what it was, or why he felt that way, but he could not shake the certainty.

His studies had been brutal this week as midterms came and went, but Kurt had passed every class with flying colors; even his "Introduction to Dance" class with Cassandra July. That had been his last one, completed at the end of the day on Friday. She had watched his entire performance with crossed arms, narrowed eyes and a skeptically pursed mouth, but when he was finished and the last note of music had died away, the class had broken into honest applause and the formidable Miss July had broken her stern façade to give him a genuine smile and a, "Much improved, Hummel. We'll make a dancer of you yet."

He had been on cloud nine ever since, and Adam had brought him out to celebrate. Neither had much money to spare, so they contented themselves with strolling through the city hand in hand, walking casually up and down Broadway and drinking in the sights along with two large iced mochas. It was fun and free to look over all the billboards and marquees, debating the merits of various shows as they drifted from theater to theater, sharing dreams of that day in the hopefully not-too-distant future when they would be a part of it all.

The appearance of the two dreamers was a pleasant treat to the eye, and the young couple was unknowingly catching approving glances as they walked. Though of similar height, Adam was bulkier, with square shoulders, prominent chest and bicep muscles that were shown off by a fitted blue t-shirt. His worn jeans hugged him like a second skin and his messy blond hair was half hidden beneath a rainbow colored beanie. The skin of his face carried more lines than one would expect in a man who had just turned twenty-three, but the easy laughter that wrinkled the corners of his deep set eyes and creased the area around his widely grinning mouth as he chatted with his boyfriend gave plenty of evidence as to their origin. Kurt, by contrast had a slender well toned form shown off to good advantage by a pale green button down shirt patterned with tiny blue sailboats. The silky material of the garment slid and clung sensuously to his skin as he moved, suggesting that a hedonist hid beneath the sweet face and innocent looking blue eyes that gazed around the busy city with such sparkling enjoyment. He had matched the shirt with fitted knee-length blue shorts and deck shoes, as the couple had made plans to watch the sunset over New York Harbor this evening. Threads of red and gold in his dark brown hair caught the surrounding sunlight and turned the well combed coif into a fiery crown of color that highlighted his milky skin and lightly flushed cheeks.

Together, they could have been some modern day incarnation of Shakespeare's Oberon and Puck, if those two had chosen to cast Titania aside and run off together into the world of man.

They were just about to take a break from the sightseeing and go find something to eat when Adam's attention was caught by a sandwich board half hidden in the entryway of a small theater, a bright red COMING SOON banner diagonally stretched across one corner.

"Kurt, look at this!" he cried out, pointing as if he feared his companion might somehow miss the attraction. The picture on the board showed a beaming blonde woman in a sparkling red dress, her arms raised in triumph as she was hoisted aloft by two handsome, muscular, shirtless men. "April Rhodes! I saw her debut production _Cross Rhodes_ a couple of years ago. Supposedly it was her life story, though it was hard to believe that all of that could have possibly come from one person's life, but the show was delightful. Catchy songs, brilliant performances by nearly everyone, and a plot that had me riveted from opening act to final curtain."

Looking distinctly amused, Kurt bit his lip. "Nearly everyone?"

"The leading man role just seemed miscast to me. The actor won rave reviews, so clearly my opinion was not the prevailing one, but I couldn't shake the niggling feeling that someone else belonged in his place. Oh, but it was a wonderful show, Kurt! I nearly pulled something during the last act, I was laughing so hard. And according to this, it looks like April Rhodes has a new production coming next year. We should find out more and see if we can get tickets!"

Kurt was grinning brightly as he took in Adam's excitement. "You're so cute when you get like this. I think a couple of tickets could probably be arranged. It might take me a little finagling, but I have a connection or two that could probably get us good seats at a hefty discount, if not comped outright."

Adam's eyes widened from his squinting study of the poster. It had no real information outside, not even a show title. Just the production company and 'coming soon'. "Are you joking? Kurt, that would be brilliant! Who do you know? Do I know them? Is it someone from NYADA?"

He was speaking so fast that his accent was growing heavier, making Kurt chuckle at the additional sign of eagerness. "Wow, I had no idea you were such an April Rhodes enthusiast! She would be thrilled. Do you mind if I tell Mr. Schuester that you hated the leading man in her first show? I'm not sure if he's still in contact with April or not, but I suspect he'd be a lot more likely to help us if he knows you didn't approve of his replacement."

Adam stopped moving, staring at his boyfriend with shocked eyes. "Wait. You're not trying to tell me that you know Miss Rhodes."

Kurt nodded. "I do, actually. She attended McKinley high school. My old school, at the same time as my choir teacher. Mister Schuester and April were friends back then, I guess, and he brought her back to the school during my sophomore year to make up some high school credits and join our glee club. I think that was about a year before she came to New York. Mr. Shue was originally going to play the male lead, which may be why you sensed something off about his replacement. It was written partly about him, you know, but he decided to honor his commitment to us instead of trying to make it as a star. I thought that was both amazingly sweet and weirdly insane."

"That makes two of us, cutie!"

The two young men nearly jumped out of their skins when a tiny blonde woman popped out from the doorway. She had apparently been lurking in the shadows eavesdropping, her small figure neatly obscured by a decorative curtain. She teetered forward on a pair of startlingly high heeled platform shoes that still only brought her to Kurt's nose as she flung her arms around his waist and squeezed him in enthusiastic greeting.

"April!" he exclaimed with a startled laugh. "Oh my God, this is such a surprise! How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to take in every word of that flattering conversation," she said cheerfully, making Kurt jump as she gave his ass a squeeze before separating herself from him and bounding over to shake hands with the saucer eyed Adam. "Hey there, handsome. I'm April and I just love meeting fans. Especially such good looking ones!"

Adam was gaping like a love struck school boy, none of his usual dignity anywhere in evidence as he struggled to recover from his bout of star struck paralysis. Finally, he began shaking her hand in return, gushing, "My dear Miss Rhodes, this is such an honor! I'm a huge admirer of your work, you have no idea! _Cross Rhodes_ was one of the first productions I was fortunate enough to see when I came to New York and it changed my life!"

She pushed playfully at his chest, fingers lingering on the firm muscles. "Well, aren't you just the sweetest thing! Say, you're not one of Will's kids too, are you? I'm absolutely sure I would have remembered you."

"No, April. Adam is my boyfriend," Kurt interrupted firmly, prying her hands off when Adam just stood there gaping, not seeming to notice that his idol's hand was well on its way to feeling him up in broad daylight. "He and I go to the New York Academy of Dramatic Art together. He was a senior at NYADA when I enrolled this past January."

April's attention abruptly refocused and she spun on one of those frightening spike heels to take a step closer to Kurt, staring up into his eyes with startling intensity. "I thought you were just visiting from Ohio! You live in New York now?" He nodded, fighting the urge to step back as her sudden proximity brought his nose far too close to her wine scented breath. "Well, why didn't you say so! That means we're neighbors. Whoo!"

He jumped when she squealed right in his ear, but grinned helplessly when she announced, "Reunion party!"

Before either Kurt or Adam could think of a reply to that, April had trotted around Kurt's body and linked her elbows with each of theirs, hauling them down the street with a startling degree of strength and determination. They practically had to jog to keep up with her.

Neither had the slightest idea of their destination, but they grinned at each other over their companion's head. The journey promised to be something of an adventure in itself.


	3. Catching Up

"Wait, where are we going?" Kurt demanded after a few minutes as April continued to tow them along like ships in the wake of a very determined little tugboat.

"The Rosewood! It's almost eleven o'clock and we have to hurry if we want to beat the rush!" she replied, not even slightly out of breath. "We should be just in time for lunch!"

Adam, who seemed to be recovering from his earlier bout of fan-boying, shot a glance at Kurt, seeing his bafflement at the reply. "The Rosewood is a Broadway landmark," he volunteered. "Very exclusive and very posh. I've only been once and we required a reservation three weeks in advance just to get a table. I'm afraid three drop-in guests might be difficult to manage, ma'am."

Kurt's face had fallen at the description of the place, realizing that meant it had to be very expensive. "It sounds like it's also a little out of our price range. Maybe we could just go grab a sandwich or something."

A dismissive raspberry was blown from April's heavily glossed pink lips. "Don't be silly, Ken! It's on me, and don't forget that I have a Tony award. Around these parts, having one of those little two-faced trinkets on your shelf is like carrying an all access pass to society heaven."

"Right. Of course. And um … my name is Kurt," he said meekly, unable to summon up any attitude when faced with a free lunch at a famous restaurant.

She let go of his arm long enough to dramatically bop herself on the forehead. "Sorry, hon. I'm afraid the ol' noodle ain't quite what she used to be these days. At least I was in the ballpark, right?"

She grinned and winked broadly at him, making Kurt smile. It had been over two years and they hadn't known each other terribly well during his sophomore year in high school. It was hardly surprising that she'd forgotten his name.

"That's okay. And thank you very much for taking us to lunch. It's really nice of you. Are you sure we're dressed appropriately, though?" he asked, glancing doubtfully over his casual sailing attire, and Adam's even more casual t-shirt, jeans and Converse. Such a restaurant might very well refuse them service without jackets and ties.

April did not even glance at their clothing. "We're fine," she drawled, oblivious to her own denim mini skirt and tight, cleavage-baring blouse. "I come to this place all the time! Besides, restaurants aren't nearly as snooty on the weekend, especially at lunch time."

Since April sounded sure of herself, the others just exchanged a shrug and went along. Sure enough, the maitre d smiled and greeted April by name, air-kissing both of her cheeks and welcoming all three guests warmly as he escorted them to a table near the back where they could chat in comfort.

They took seats along a comfortably padded horseshoe seat with the two boys on either side of April. The three of them chatted amiably for a few minutes before a waiter appeared with a set of menus.

"Welcome to the Rosewood. My name is Anthony and it will be my pleasure to serve you today. Would you like to hear our lunch specials?"

At Adam's acceptance, he rattled off a long list of salads, soups, and entrees that fairly made their heads spin. Kurt and Adam looked at each other, telegraphing their uncertainty as to what would be appropriate. Should they order a special, likely less expensive than the regular items, whose prices had caused Kurt to go a little paler than normal when he opened his menu? Or maybe split an entrée. Or, having offered to pay, would April consider it rude if they were being too obviously frugal? Adam did not know her and Kurt had never been in such a situation before.

Apparently reading their expressions accurately, April solved the problem by saying, "Order whatever you like, boys. Like I said, this one is on me!" She flung her hands joyfully to either side as she spoke, nearly taking out both her lunch dates. She laughed when they ducked, leaning to the left and pressing her head against Adam's broad shoulder. He seemed equal parts amused and startled when she batted her gigantic false lashes and asked, "Whatcha drinkin', handsome?"

"Oh, I …" he glanced over the drink menu quickly. "I'll have a pint of your amber ale, thanks."

The waiter nodded and jotted the choice down, giving him an odd look when Adam suddenly squeaked and jumped, rattling the table hard enough that he had to reach out quickly to steady his place setting when the decorative china rattled.

Kurt gave his boyfriend a questioning look, but Adam just blushed at his embarrassing action and shook his head. "Excuse me, leg cramp."

"Of course, sir," the waiter said politely, moving on to April. "And for the lady?"

"You just bring me the biggest bottle of red you have in your cellar and a nice clean glass."

He simply nodded and wrote down her choice when he received an exaggerated wink, the sloppiness of which suggested that this would not be his customer's first drink of the day.

April nudged Kurt in the ribs. "What do you say, hot stuff? Want to join me in a little essence of the grape, for old time's sake?"

A slight grimace wrinkled Kurt's mouth at the reminder of the battery-acid-like "Chablis" this woman had convinced him would solve all of his problems once upon a time. He had since learned to appreciate an occasional glass of wine at home with friends, but the reminder of his first experience with alcohol turned him off the idea for today. "No, I think I'll just stick with water."

April sloppily winked again. "And by water he means vodka!"

"May I see your ID, sir?" the waiter asked.

Kurt shook his head. Of course he wouldn't be served alcohol in a restaurant when he was only a couple of months past his twentieth birthday. It was a little annoying that Adam wasn't being carded too. "I don't have it with me, and she was only joking. I meant just plain old ice water."

The man smirked, clearly believing that Kurt had backed down when his age was challenged. April also caught the look, for she screeched, "Oh, sugar, don't let this cute baby face fool ya! He's more than old enough to indulge. Hell, I should know!"

"Ma'am?" he asked, pen poised over his pad uncertainly.

April reached out and grabbed Kurt's face, squeezing his cheeks together so hard that his lips popped into a fish-like pout. "Don't you love this face? He's got the gift, I tell ya. Casting directors are still going to be hiring him to play a teenager when he's forty. In fact, I'm thinking of casting him in my next production as my kid brother. It'll be a scream!"

"Your… next show?" he asked, the hopeful tone of voice giving away the fact that he was likely only waiting tables while trying to find his big break. The brown eyes positively lit up at the idea that he might be serving lunch to someone famous, or at least well connected in the business.

"Hell, yeah! I'm April Rhodes, writer and lead actress of the Tony Winning Broadway show, _Cross Rhodes_." The man gaped, looking appropriately impressed when the woman threw her head back, flipping her blonde hair dramatically and lifting her free arm in a pose not unlike the one that had been on the billboard for her show. "As for this little cutie, Kurt and I went to high school together back in Ohio. We were in glee-club together, just waiting to make our mark some day on The Broad Way. Hell, sweet cheeks! I had the joy of taking this boy's vino-virginity away from him. Didn't I, Kurt?"

She laughed manically, still holding Kurt's face and now shaking it like she had mistaken him for a cup, and his eyeballs for dice.

"I ran into Kurt and his boyfriend out on 54th street and we came here to catch up on old times. Are you really going to turn our business away just because my friend forgot his wallet this morning? I'm pretty sure Walt wouldn't be too happy if he hears about that."

The young waiter's eyes widened even further, in alarm this time at her casual invocation of the restaurant manager's given name. "No, ma'am, of course not! I meant no offense, sir, truly," he said to Kurt. "Please, order any drink you like. In fact, I'll see to it that your beverage is comped for the mistake."

Kurt finally succeeded in wrestling his face away from April's iron grip, opening and closing his mouth and gingerly working his jaw to make sure she had not damaged him. He waved a dismissive hand at the anxious looking server, who looked to be no older than he was himself.

"It's okay, Anthony. This wouldn't be the first time somebody mistook me for a kid. In fact, at my age I'm starting to take it as a compliment," he said wryly, avoiding looking at his companions out of fear that he would not be able to hold his composure. "And seriously, I really do just want a nice tall glass of ice water. However, if you'll save me a slice of that delicious looking strawberry cheesecake I saw in your display case when we walked in, we'll call it good."

"Of course, sir," the waiter offered, looking relieved but also a trifle confused. "It's restaurant policy to check I.D.s, so I'm afraid I had to ask. I'll bring your water and the other drinks right away!"

He scurried off at lightning speed, clearly worried for the fate of his job.

The trio of diners managed to hold straight faces until he had disappeared, then all three burst into muffled snickers. Adam's eyes twinkled with amusement as he affected an old man's reedy voice and poked a finger toward Kurt, wheezing, "When you get to be my age you need a nice soft slice of cheesecake because anything else is too hard to gum through."

Kurt reached around April and gave him a little smack on the arm. "Oh, shut up. Like you would have handled it any differently."

He laughed. "Naturally, I would. I would have selected that decadent chocolate mousse pie right next to your cheesecake. In fact, I may have to indulge myself in a bit of that, regardless." Capturing April's hand and placing a gallant kiss upon her knuckles, he placed his other hand on his chest and gave her a tiny half-bow. "Madam, my compliments on your performance as well. That was brilliant."

"My pleasure, hon," she said, rubbing his thigh in a brisk motion. "And I didn't say anything that wasn't true, strictly speaking."

Her gesture brought April's fingers a little higher up his thigh than Adam was clearly comfortable with, judging by the way he edged away from her. Kurt could tell from the tipsily suggestive grin on April's face that she was doing it on purpose. Adam shifted a few inches closer to end of the bench and Kurt's eyes narrowed, realizing that April had likely been helping herself to a little inappropriate groping earlier when Adam had become so jumpy.

Snapping his menu open with enough force to rearrange April's huge, hair sprayed coif, he gritted his teeth into a bright smile and said, "So! What's good here?"

"The lamb is excellent," Adam offered, his grin reappearing as he ducked his head to hide his laughter at Kurt's open show of annoyance. "I came here for a graduation party for one of our senior Apples a year ago and everything was delicious."

"Oh, definitely! But I think your tastes would veer more toward the filet mignon. I know there's nothing I like better than a savory, succulent young cut of beef," April agreed, tipping towards Adam again and nearly falling face first into his lap as she misjudged the new, greater distance he had imposed between them.

At least, Kurt hoped it was an accident. It was a little hard to tell at this point. She gave Kurt a once-over as well and pinched his side, making him jump and emit a startled giggle when she hit a ticklish spot.

April grinned at his reactive blush. "A nice tender cut of lamb isn't so bad either, though. Adam here has great taste. I'll bet you know that a lot better than I do, though. Am I right?" She started cackling again, amusing herself with her clumsy innuendo.

Adam stared at her with wide eyes. His earlier admiration for the April he had seen on stage seemed to be doing a shocked retreat in the face the real thing. He cleared his throat and said, "Excuse me a moment. I think I need to use the men's room before we eat. Could you order me the Italian baked chicken with tortellini if our server beats me back?"

"Of course," Kurt agreed, feeling concerned as he watched his boyfriend toss his napkin onto the table and hurry off. Watching him disappear toward the back of the restaurant, he turned to his remaining companion, eyes going a dangerous shade of dark green as he hissed, "April …"

A few minutes later, after a few pointed words to the woman, who looked over-dramatically startled that Kurt could have _possibly_ thought she might be hitting on his man, Kurt moved toward the restroom and discovered Adam splashing cold water on his overheated cheeks.

"Hey. Are you all right? You've been gone a long time. The waiter came back so I ordered for you."

Adam nodded and began to dry his hands on one of the soft courtesy towels that were laid out in baskets along the counter of the lushly appointed men's room. Kurt bit his lip as he watched him.

"You're not talking. Are you upset? I told April she was being inappropriate but I'm not convinced she believed I was serious. Her standard of what is and isn't out of line are kind of … different from most people and she can be hard to get a read on sometimes. I don't think she means any harm, but I haven't seen her in a couple of years. I'd totally forgotten that she'll hit on any male left within ten feet of her. The two of us are probably even more tempting because she knows that she can tease and hint all she wants without any chance that we'll actually take her up on the offer."

Adam smiled at him in the mirror. "I'm fine, love. I'm not upset, though I was somewhat shocked when she began mauling us like a hungry cougar in the middle of a fine restaurant. I simply had to leave for a moment because I was suddenly hit by an unholy desire to laugh. I thought it might be best to make a strategic retreat until the danger passed."

Kurt relaxed, knowing that if he had not been so mortified he likely would have experienced the same difficulty. "I'm really sorry. April is a sweetheart, when you get to know her, but she's kind of a lot to take. In addition to getting me drunk on school grounds, teaching my best friend to shoplift and de-virginizing half the football team, she also gave us a practice space and free skating for a week at the roller-rink she owned and then leased the school auditorium for two full years just so we could have somewhere to hold Glee rehearsals after Coach Sylvester tried to shut us out."

Shaking his head, Adam stepped over and wrapped his boyfriend in a fond embrace. "I really must visit this school of yours one day, love. If even half the stories you tell of it are true, I could find enough material for a dozen songs."

Kurt smiled ruefully. "Probably. It's good to know were some advantages to the time I put in there."

"As for April," Adam continued, "I strongly suspect that she was having a laugh at my expense due to the idiotic way I behaved when we met earlier." He shook his head. "When she started grilling us about our thoughts on bisexuality and what denotes an acceptable age gap between lovers when we first sat down, I stupidly told myself that she was doing some sort of sociological research for her new production!"

"Well, I suppose that is possible, but I'd steer clear if I were you. Something tells me April is the hands-on research type." His eyes sparkled playfully. "Mr. Shue always looked like he'd been though a hurricane after he'd been alone with her, but I tried not to speculate too much on the reason why. Mostly for my own sanity."

Adam laughed. "Well, perhaps we should switch seats when we return, with you in the middle so that you can protect my virtue."

Kurt kissed the corner of Adam's smiling mouth. "Ah, but then who would protect mine?"

Twining their hands together, the two young men walked back out into the restaurant in time to see April pouring herself another generous glass of red wine from the bottle their waiter had brought in Adam's absence. "Well, there you are!" she said cheerfully, clinking her glass with each of theirs as he resumed their seats. "I was afraid you'd skipped out on me."

"We wouldn't do that," Kurt promised with a smile. "Thank you again for lunch. As poor college students, we don't get to enjoy this kind of treat very often."

Adam agreed, "Indeed we don't. This is very generous of you, Miss Rhodes, and it's also, if I neglected to say so earlier, quite an honor to be sharing a meal with a bona fide Tony winner."

April beamed. "Well, aren't you two just the sweetest? You know, Kurt, I was just thinking. I may have only said that I was casting you in my new show to put that snooty waiter in his place, but now that I've had some time to think it over, I can't think of anyone I'd rather have in my new show than one of Will Schuester's protégés. And while I don't quite remember how you sounded from my own experience, you're a NYADA student now, so you must be a hell of a singer. What do you say? Would you like the role of the kid brother in my new production, playing opposite moi?"

For a moment, Kurt could not get his mouth and brain working together. Not even Rachel Berry had ever been given an opportunity like this one. A supporting role in a brand new Broadway musical, from someone with legitimate connections, without even going through the cattle call of auditions and call backs? "Are you serious?"

"As a funeral at the Vatican!" she said cheerfully.

"Oh my God. April, that would be amazing. Are you sure your producer and director would be on board with that, though? I mean, I am only a first year student."

April waved a hand airily. "You just let me worry about them. It's my show and I can do whatever I want with it. So, what do you say, honey? You in?"

Overcome with joy, he threw his arms around her, all by hyperventilating with excitement. April just laughed and returned the embrace.

"Oh! Adam is a student at NYADA as well," Kurt hastened to remind her as he pulled back and remembered his proudly grinning boyfriend. "He graduated the bachelors program in musical composition this past semester, and he's coming back to begin studying for his Masters in the fall. He's also a performer. A great one! The founder and leader of the honors glee club, so if you're looking for someone with song-writing skill, stage experience and a great bari-tenor voice, he's your man."

His words were tumbling over one another as he sang Adam's praises. Adam blushed with pleasure at the enthusiastic sales pitch. When Kurt paused for breath, he cut in. "Naturally, I wouldn't want to force myself on you based on the extremely generous recommendation of a mutual friend," he said modestly, "but I would be more than happy to audition for a part in your show, Miss Rhodes, if you feel that there's an appropriate role for me to play."

April beamed with pleasure at his polite manners, smacking him on the shoulder. "You and I are friends now, handsome. Call me April."

A hint of his earlier star struck manner returning, Adam's blush grew brighter, coloring his cheeks a deep rose shade as he ducked his head. "I should be delighted, April."

"Indeed you should," she agreed with a giggle. "And I'd love to have you audition. If you're any good, which I'm sure you are, then of course you can have a part in the show! As a matter of fact, the casting auditions are happening all this week and we've already had a couple of students from your school try out. Most of the folks I've seen so far just didn't really float my boat, if you know what I mean. Too stuck up and classical, like they all think they're trying out for grand opera instead of a little musical comedy. I'm looking for people who know how to have fun."

"How so?" Adam asked with interest.

"Oh, you know; somebody who really loves what they do and isn't afraid to let the world see it. Somebody with passion and fire." She spaced out for a few seconds, smiling in fond reminiscence. Then she came back to the present and said, "That's why I think you two would be perfect additions. I can see all of those things in you. Besides, I just love hanging out with younger folks. They have so much potential and they make me feel young again just being around them. And with all of us being from Ohio, it really will be like the good old days!"

Kurt and Adam looked at each other, neither quite knowing what to say. Finally, Adam decided to be honest. "Well, actually, I'm not from Ohio. I'm not even from the United States. I'm from England, originally."

"You don't say!" she replied, her blue eyes widening with surprise. Then she teased, "I thought I might have noticed a little accent in there."

Adam was charmed. "Yes, well, I've been working on smoothing it out a bit. Wouldn't want American audiences to think I've got a mouthful of gravel, as my first year elocution instructor once accused me of."

She clapped her hands, suddenly excited. "You know, this show is set in New Jersey. We could cast you as the younger brother's best friend. Say you're from Hoboken or somewhere. I bet nobody would even notice the difference."

Kurt stifled a burst of laughter into his napkin. "Well, there you go then! What do you say, Adam? Want to be my new best friend from not-so-new Jersey?"

"Oh, I like that," April announced, eyeing Kurt with approval. She painted the words across the empty air in front of her with a wide swath of her palm. "Not So New Jersey. That would make a great song title. I'll have to add it in. The songs are still in progress right now. So is the script. But we have a producer, a director and a venue, so that's all the hard parts taken care of. And now I have two new handsome supporting men to help me get things going."

"What exactly is the show about?" Kurt asked curiously, realized that she had never mentioned anything about the story.

April clapped her hands. "Oh, you'll love it. It's so original! It's all about a group of high school kids and their choir teacher … that's me … who beat the odds and work their way up off the bottom rung of the social ladder and all the way to a National championship, after overcoming a few trials and tribulations along the way of course."

The sheer familiarity of her "original" plot made Kurt's eyebrows climb for his hairline. "You don't say. And the part you're offering me?"

"My little brother! His name is Ronnie and he's the quarterback who joins the choir and brings in his popular friends, and his girlfriend, and all her friends along to boost the group's numbers. His amazing duets with his sister Amy inspire all of her other student to rally around them and eventually form a sort of family together," she said happily, slurping down another gulp of wine.

He blinked. "I'd be playing a straight guy?" Not that he did not believe he could if asked, but Kurt had honestly never expected anyone would offer him the chance to try. At least not at this stage of life, when his baby face, high voice, and impeccable personal style tended to be the first things people noticed about him.

"Would you rather not?" April asked.

"I wouldn't mind," he said hastily. "I was just surprised, that's all. It's actually really flattering that you think I could do it."

Adam smiled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Well, I believe that you can do anything you set your mind to, darling. And perhaps little brother is having a conflict of interest between his girlfriend and this fellow from not-so-new-Jersey."

"That's it!" April shrieked, making them both jump and bringing curious looks from every other occupied table in the restaurant. "I've been trying to find an angle that was a little bit different. What if Ronnie is still figuring out his sexuality and is afraid to confess his love for his best friend, fearing that his girlfriend might dump the choir right along with him, and the other football players might not be as understanding as they should be? And the sister, who is no stranger to closet choir queens herself let me tell you, can be there to dispense wisdom and inspirational songs to help him out. That's genius, Kurt! Is everyone at NYADA this good? No wonder I hired you."

She looked so pleased that neither of them had the heart to splash cold water on her enthusiasm, though as their eyes met, Kurt and Adam both knew the other had doubts about how well such a twist might be received by the general public.

Their lunch chose that moment to arrive from the kitchen, so they were fortunately saved from trying to think of a response. As his plate was set before him, Kurt inhaled the aroma of steaming hot chicken and pasta, closing his eyes at the delectable scents of garlic, tomatoes, olive oil and spices mingling together. He had ordered the same as Adam, deciding it sounded too good to pass up. It was also one of the lower cost options on the menu. Not that that was saying much in a place like this, but it did make him feel better. "Wow, this smells wonderful," he complimented, nodding thanks to his server.

April had ordered some sort of complicated looking seafood salad for herself, and their waiter's eyes bugged a bit when she ordered a glass of wine to go with it, probably realizing that she had finished off the bottle he had brought in less time than it had taken their food order to be prepared, but he merely said, "I'll bring that right out for you, ma'am. Would you like a refill on your drink as well, sir?"

He directed the question to Adam, having already poured more ice water into Kurt's glass. Kurt had to stifle a grin at the dedication to which his glass was remaining topped off after their earlier 'misunderstanding' about his age.

"No, thank you," Adam said with a smile. "I've taken on a part time summer job giving dance lessons, and I've a rehearsal to lead this afternoon. It wouldn't reflect well on me to show up for class already half in the bag."

Kurt laughed. "I don't know about that. It might make for a pretty fun rehearsal!"

April knocked back the rest of her drink. "It does, trust me. Some of the best shows I ever gave were the ones I couldn't remember afterward."

A tiny frown creased Adam's brow. "But … if you can't remember what you did, how do you know they were good?"

She just grinned. "I may not remember the performances, honey, but I never forget the applause!"


	4. Audition

The cheesecake and chocolate mousse turned out to be every bit as mouth-watering as they had appeared and Adam and Kurt found themselves struggling to maintain their usual standard of good manners and eat slowly and politely while their hostess continued to happily chat with them. When her phone rang and distracted her from the conversation, however, two pairs of blue eyes exchanged a questioning glance and then both young men grinned and abruptly bent to the task, gobbling down their treats as fast as April's distraction would permit.

"Larry, thanks for calling back!" She tittered playfully at whatever was said in response. "Grab a chair and hang on because I've got some great news that's going to knock you flying. I have just landed you the perfect Ronnie and Vince."

Noticing that she had regained the boys' attention, April playfully rolled her eyes and made talky motions with her hand. "I wouldn't joke about a thing like this! We haven't liked any of the fellas that came in to try out for those roles, but now I know it was because the good lord just hadn't turned his flashlight in the right direction yet. That's why I texted you to call me. When I was on my way to lunch today, I just happened to have this beautiful pair of men fall right into my lap!"

Kurt choked as he recalled April literally falling onto Adam's lap earlier, coughing around his cheesecake when eating and innuendo turned out not to mix well. Adam helpfully thumped him on the back, his mischievous smirk revealing that he too had picked up on the apropos wording.

"Well now, calm down honey," April continued. "I know this isn't the way these things are usually done, but when have I ever been one for boring and average? I'm going to bring them down and have them audition today, just like everybody else has. You guys deserve to put in your two cents' worth, so I want you, Jack and Pauline to get your cute little heinies back down to the theater ASAP and we'll meet you there. Yes, right now! If you don't agree that these two boys are just as cute as a basketful of puppies and amazing singers to boot, I'll eat a pair of Spanx without sauce!"

Nose wrinkling, Adam mouthed, 'Spanx?"

Kurt gave his best rendition of sad, soulful eyes and returned, 'Puppies', so adorably that Adam nearly spewed a mouthful of mousse back at him before he could stifle the unexpected burst of laughter into his napkin.

April laughed as well, sounding delighted. "Well, that's more like it! We'll be down in half an hour." As she hung up the call, April beamed at her companions and energetically waved her arm to catch their waiter's attention for the check. "You're on your way, boys! Are you excited? All you have to do is sing something pretty and read a couple of passages from the show for my director, producer, and casting agent and you're home free."

Suddenly, the amusement drained out of their faces. "Wait," Kurt said, hands rising to clasp nervously beneath his chin. "You just said we'd be back at the theater in a half hour. You seriously want us to get up in front of actual Broadway casting people, and just wing it?"

Adam reached over and rested a soothing hand on his arm, the touch instinctively causing some of the tension in Kurt's body to uncoil. "You'll be fine, love. Half an hour is practically an age compared with the time you were given to prepare for last year's Winter Showcase, and look at what you did with that. This will be nothing in comparison."

Kurt's anxious eyes softened as he returned Adam's gaze, taking his hand and giving it a grateful squeeze. "You sound so sure."

"I am sure," he said firmly. Then his resolute expression twisted as he scratched his free hand through his tousled hair. "I only wish I felt as certain about my own fate. Should I even be trying this? I can sing but I wasn't a musical theater major. I'd hate to bollocks this up and have it reflect poorly on you."

Kurt hastened to offer comforting words of his own. "That would never happen. You're a wonderful singer, Adam." One corner of his mouth lifted into a teasing smirk as he squeezed Adam's hand. "And even if we're both a disaster, even if I freeze up and go mute with stage fright and you trip over your own feet and fall flat on your face while singing a passionate rendition of "Man, I Feel Like a Woman", I'll still be proud to do this with you."

Adam laughed and pecked his boyfriend's cheek. "Same, love. Same."

"However, that is not going to happen. I have been preparing for this moment my whole life," Kurt reminded himself, taking a deep breath and straightening his spine. "And you, Adam Crawford, are a talented performer and actor, as well as being the director and lead of NYADA's only glee club. If anyone can pull off something like this on the fly, it's you."

Watching this exchange with her chin in her hands, April heaved a dreamy sigh. "You two are going to be so good together." Then, surprising both of them, her tone became solemn. "But you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I know what I said, and I believe that you two are exactly what I've been looking for, but me feeding you a fancy lunch and a shovelful of flattery doesn't obligate you."

"But you believe we can do this?" Adam said, filling in the blank that could be heard hovering at the end of her sentence.

She nodded, a sincere smile lighting her features. "Yes. And I'm sorry for the short notice but I'm afraid that if we wait, the others will pick somebody who isn't nearly as good. I can feel it in my gut that you two are perfect and if there's one thing I've learned over the years it's to never second guess a gut feeling."

Kurt and Adam looked at one another, knowing they were in agreement. Kurt voiced their decision. "If we don't even try, I know we'll both regret the 'might have beens' for the rest of our lives. We're in."

The tiny woman squealed and jumped up to her knees on the padded restaurant bench, practically climbing the table in order to hug them. "Ooooh, I just knew you wouldn't let me down!" she gushed. "Now, come on. Let me pay for this and we'll get the hell out of Dodge before either of you has the chance to change his mind."

In no time at all they had arrived back at their starting point. Both young men were quiet as they followed April through the doors of the small but lavishly appointed theater.

Kurt had only been inside a professional theater a couple of times. Visiting the Gershwin with Rachel had been an adventure, sneaking in to stand where the greats stood each night and allowing themselves to dream lofty dreams of stardom, but this was different. It was a real Broadway audition that had the potential to become a life-changing opportunity. From the sweaty feeling of the hand tightly clenched in his, Adam was feeling the pressure as well.

They let go of each other before they approached the stage, wanting to look like professionals and not a pair of frightened children clinging to each other for safety.

A heavy-set balding man turned to watch them approach, knocking on the back of the seat next to him to catch the attention of two disgruntled looking people who had been whispering animatedly over a script. A second man with a thin build and high neatly-plucked eyebrows, eyed them skeptically, while the stout gray haired woman at his side looked at April the way one would look at an insect that had unexpectedly made an appearance in one's dinner.

"April!" the first man boomed, his sonorous voice echoing through the empty theater and making both Kurt and Adam startle. "This had better be good, dragging us all the way back down here after we've sat through an entire morning of auditions. We were supposed to be done for the day!"

Unruffled by his disapproval, April just sashayed up and pinched his flabby cheek. "Now, Larry, you know perfectly well that we left the call sheet open until noon. It's not these boys' fault that you decided to shut down early."

"That's because there was no one left on the sign up sheet," the other woman cut in sourly, her tone making it clear that she considered it a grave insult that hopefuls were not beating down the door to get involved in any production that she was a part of.

April just rolled her eyes. "Now, Pauline, you agreed that we would start small and see how word of mouth treated us before spending all our money on advertising."

"You agreed," the woman grumbled.

The final man ignored the repartee between his partners, moving toward the newcomers with an exaggerated sashay. He flashed a flirty smile at Adam and announced, "Jack Winters," presenting his hand in a way that suggested he was expecting it to be kissed.

Adam merely grasped the tips of his fingers and gave them a little shake. "Adam Crawford."

"My, my, I can certainly see why Miss Rhodes was drawn to you, big, blond and beautiful. You would make a _delicious_ Ronnie Stone."

Kurt's jaw tightened in annoyance at both the assumption that Adam would be playing the jock, and the way this man was so blatantly flirting with his boyfriend. "Actually, Mr. Winters," he said in a clear, cold tone that carried in the empty theater and drew the eyes of everyone to him, "Adam is here to try out for the role of Vince. My name is Kurt Hummel and I'll be auditioning for the role of Ronnie."

The man blinked at him as if only just noticing that he was there. He seemed surprised by the interruption but not, much to Kurt's surprise, displeased. The man looked him up and down, noting the flawless posture and stubbornly squared jaw as Kurt returned his scrutiny without a trace of intimidation. His dark eyes lit up with a spark of genuine interest.

"How intriguing." He turned to April and smiled, drawing surprised looks from Larry and Pauline. "I can see why you were drawn to this one. He's quite handsome, doesn't scare easily, and he's got a certain . . . fire to him."

April was grinning. "He does. My script is meant to suggest that the brother has hidden depths, and this boy is a regular diamond mine. In fact, it came to me over lunch that these two best friends have probably been questioning their sexuality for a long time. They just hadn't recognized the answer in each other because they're too close."

Excitement flared in the small man's eyes. Something about the searching quality to his gaze told the two hopefuls that this man was no stranger to the experience she described.

"I do believe you're right," he said slowly. "It would absolutely give those characters the focus they were lacking in your earlier drafts. It would put a fresh spin on them both and possibly elevate this relationship into a major plot point. The disrespect the choir gets before they prove themselves, the jealous girlfriend, the choir teacher's bumpy relationship with her football coach boyfriend … yes, the brother's hidden romance could absolutely pull it all together."

Larry also looked thoughtful, but Pauline appeared to have bitten down on a very sour pickle. "You're planning to turn a story about outcasts striving to find their place in high school into nothing more than a farce," she snapped. "I didn't agree to that when I agreed to pour a significant chunk of my money into this production."

"Oh quit being such an old fuddy duddy and join the Twenty-First century, Pauline," April shot back. "We'd simply be telling a love story, and if sexual awakening isn't the very foundation of outcasts figuring out where they belong in high school, then I don't know what is. I've even come up with the perfect song for Vince and Ronnie to sing when they recognize their mutual feelings. Well, to be honest Kurt came up with the idea, but I'm going to write the song as soon as I can get my hands on a pen and paper. It's called "Not So New Jersey", a love ballad."

The other three looked a bit confused by the title. Adam cleared his throat. "I'm afraid the title is my fault. I'm not exactly the _New_ Jersey type," he explained in his distinctive British tone. The puzzled looks faded and Pauline very nearly managed to look amused.

"Well, I suppose there's no reason why we can't give these two a chance," Larry decided, pulling out a note-pad and a pair of glasses, ready to get back on track. "Let's get you up there and see what you've got. Do you have a number prepared for us?"

After a quick consultation, the two NYADA students took the stage together and sang "I See the Light" from the Disney musical "Tangled", both of them putting every ounce of the feelings they shared into the performance. They wanted to convince the panel of the veracity of two young men exploring their burgeoning sexuality, as well as show off their talents.

Apparently this plan had merit. Each was asked to sing a short solo, so Adam gave them "As Long As You're Mine" while Kurt decided to show off his range and perform a song he had not done since the early days of high school. His shortened version of "A House Is Not a Home" had April clasping her hands and bouncing in her seat with delight.

Next, they were asked to read a scene from the in-progress script. They did their best with the cold reading of what appeared to be a heart to heart between the two friends about the fate of the show choir. It wasn't difficult for Kurt to get back into the mindset of his New Directions self and since there were a lot of funny lines written in for Ronnie, he found himself blossoming to life as he delivered the wry, witty dialogue. Adam, whose character as currently written reminded Kurt of Artie Abrams, matched him as well as if they had been performing together all of their lives.

There was a bit of murmured discussion from the casting committee when they finished, keeping their voices down this time to avoid letting the two actors know what they had thought. This was followed by a cool sounding, "Thank you, gentlemen. We'll be in touch," from Pauline.

Wilting under that less than encouraging reaction, Adam and Kurt thanked them for their time and left the stage. Before they could reach the back door of the theater, April came hurrying after them and gave each a parting embrace. She jotted down their phone numbers, which they had all forgotten to exchange in the rush to get here earlier, and said, "Don't worry. You both did great. Those three just have to go through the motions." She gave Kurt an excited punch in the bicep. "You were especially amazing, kid, and I know Jack will fight for you. He recognized you while you were singing and I already know he wants to work with you."

Kurt's brow scrunched. "Recognized me from where? As far as I know we've never met before."

April waved her hand. "Oh, I don't know. Some Christmas concert or something." She perked up, pointing a sharp fingernail at Adam. "Hey, I wonder if it's that same winter thingamawhosit you were talking about earlier."

"The Winter Showcase," Adam agreed, a broad grin stretching across his face. "Quite possibly. It's a combination concert and competition, very exclusive invitation-only performances. I was lucky enough to attend as the plus-one of a friend in the theater wing and Kurt made a strong impression on everyone with his performance that night. He very much earned the standing ovation he won and if he'd already been a student, I'm convinced he would have won the entire showcase."

Kurt's face was blushing redder with every enthusiastic sentence. "Oh, come on now. Rachel got an ovation too and she deserved to win."

April's grin faltered. "Rachel?" she said. "You don't mean that arrogant little girl that Will was so taken with back in Ohio. The one who walked out on you guys before your first big concert?"

A laugh escaped Kurt. "The very same. Rachel Berry, former New Directions lead and current NYADA student. Also, my roommate, along with Santana Lopez. Do you remember her too?"

She pondered the name for a moment. "That saucy little chili-pepper cheerleader?" The slightly racist description was softened with a cheerful laugh. "Of course I do! She reminded me of me back in my show-choir days. The original ones, I mean. She didn't drop out of school, run off with her boyfriend, and get knocked up in a threesome did she?"

Adam and Kurt exchanged an alarmed look. "Uh, no," Kurt said. "She broke up with her girlfriend, dropped out of college, and moved here to New York to figure out her life's passion."

The smile went slightly wistful. "Ahhh, dem's the good ol' days."

Not even wanting to ask what she meant by that, Adam broke in, "April, thank you. For everything. No matter what happens next, this has been a truly worthwhile experience. Meeting you has been an absolute delight and this audition was an excellent ice breaker into the world of professional theater, even if your friends ultimately decide to go a different way."

April made a fluttering motion with her hand as if fanning back tears, and then she gave him a hug. "You too, honey. Now that we're neighbors I expect to see you boys now and then. Don't you go forgetting about me if things don't go the way they ought to. Though they will, of course!"

Deciding not to comment on the hasty correction, Kurt just gave her a farewell smile and then he and his boyfriend departed for home. Walking back down the now much busier sidewalks of Broadway, they remained silent for a few minutes, trying to absorb the reality of what had just happened.

Suddenly Adam laughed. "Well, wasn't _that_ an experience! I don't know how on earth I'm going to appear sober and interested for my students this afternoon, when I feel like shouting and singing and doing back-flips with all of this excess energy! Kurt, when we got out of bed this morning, if you had told me that we would be meeting April Rhodes, having her buy us a delicious lunch that probably rivaled my quarterly tuition cost, and be tossed up on a stage to audition for a brand new Broadway musical, I'd have thought for certain you'd gone barmy."

Kurt grinned. "When you put it all together like that, it does sound kind of ridiculous. Do you think either of us will get a call-back? I mean, I know that April's in our corner and it's her show and all, but I really doubt that she's got the power to just give us those roles if the rest of those people don't share her enthusiasm."

Adam pursed his lips thoughtfully, reaching out his hand to clasp Kurt's and swinging their joined hands between their bodies. "I suspect you're right about that, but we shouldn't let our spirits fall. Even if we don't get the roles we auditioned for, or only one of us does, it was still a worthwhile effort. Plus, I wouldn't be surprised to be offered a place in the ensemble regardless of how the main casting goes. I suspect April could swing that much and it would be quite an accomplishment for a couple of first-timers who are still attending theater school."

Feeling his spirits lift at this philosophical attitude, Kurt smiled. "You're absolutely right, and that would be amazing too. After all, we can't all be Fanny Brice."

The two of them grinned at each other, remembering Rachel's try out for "Funny Girl" that had ended in her being asked to understudy one of the other roles. A position she had turned down flat in a fit of insulted pique, having been absolutely sure that she would be offered the lead without so much as a question on the part of the audition panel. Upon discovering that the director had no intention of changing his decision, she had cried and flailed and yelled and thrown things, putting on a tantrum that had made her legendary New Directions storm-outs pale by comparison and had subsequently been tossed out of the production entirely.

"Oh my gosh," Kurt said, suddenly stopping in his tracks. Meeting Adam's confused gaze he said, "Rachel. What am I going to tell her? Will she be glad that I got an audition, or angry that it didn't happen to her? Especially once she finds out that April Rhodes was involved. She and Santana know April too, after all."

Adam looked uncomfortable, as if he were weighing his answers to find the least offensive option, but finally he shrugged his shoulders and said, "They're your friends. Rachel is your best friend, or so she's always telling us. If that's true then they should be happy for you getting such an incredible opportunity. After all, it isn't as though you undercut anyone or kept the auditions for this show a secret. You simply happened to be in the right place at the right time and fortune favored you." He bopped his head in a small sideways motion. "Well, might have favored you. Us. If things go well."

Kurt disengaged his hand and slid his arm around his boyfriend's firm waist instead. His voice held a note of foreboding as he replied, "I hope you're right. I guess all I can do now is tell them and find out." He walked silently for a minute, then asked hopefully, "Any chance your students wouldn't mind a gate-crasher? Then we can go on to the harbor a little earlier than we planned. I suddenly don't feel like going home anymore."


	5. Telling the Roomies

Adam found that giving lessons with Kurt in attendance became a lot livelier than was typical. The younger man had sworn he would just sit back and observe, quiet as the proverbial mouse, but Adam's students had had other ideas. They were a group of young women who were delighted to have a handsome young man to show off for, and Kurt had thoroughly enjoyed both the musical performance and the flirting. He had shamelessly flirted back, much to Adam's amusement, and it had taken very little coaxing to get Kurt to add live vocals to the instrumental 1940's Standards that he preferred to teach by.

"Today was really fun," Kurt observed with a grin as the two of them rode the subway toward Bushwick that night. "Did you see that pair of girls who left your class last today? The blonde one slipped me her phone number as they were going."

Adam laughed. "Well, you don't have to sound quite so excited about it. Or are you planning to abandon yours truly for the charms of a young siren?"

A happy chortle met the question. "Of course not, but it felt kind of nice that she thought I was worth the try. I hope you didn't mind me playing along, but I was thinking of it as a kind of rehearsal for April's play. If I can convince a couple of high school girls that I'm playing for their team, maybe I actually have a shot at convincing an audience. Remember, April said they're not supposed to know that either of us is gay at the start of the show."

That made sense, especially given the mocking that typically came Kurt's way when he attempted to do something that the world deemed too classically masculine. Adam had seen that behavior far too many times. Some idiots just believed that everyone had to fit a stereotype. Still. "I'm glad to know that you're thinking positively about our chances."

He shrugged. "I'm trying to." As they departed the subway station, Kurt's steps became a bit slower. "Is it stupid to admit that I'm still nervous about going home? It's been such an amazing day and I'm not ready to have the bubble popped."

"I think you may be selling your friends a bit short," Adam told him, hoping to hell that he was right. "At least give them a chance to be happy for you."

"You're right," he said, taking a deep breath as they approached the flat that Kurt shared with Rachel Berry and Santana Lopez. Kurt took another breath and let it out slowly, his hands moving in a subtle pattern that caught Adam's attention and had him nodding in approval. Adam was a student of Tai Chi and he recognized that Kurt was trying to center himself with the breathing exercises that Adam had shared with him. Kurt sounded more confident when he repeated, "You're absolutely right."

Adam squeezed his hand as they reached the front door. "Ready?"

Kurt opened the door and led him inside, and Adam struggled to present a pleasant smile. A person should not be so nervous at the prospect of facing his best mates with exciting news. Especially someone like Kurt who worked so hard and always seemed to be ready with a hug, a cheer, or a word of sympathy when anyone else needed an emotional outlet.

A distracted, "Hey, guys," met them from the sofa, where Rachel and Santana were watching television together.

"Hi, Rachel," Kurt returned, fishing his house keys from his pocket and setting them on a small table near the door.

Adam nodded to the girls. "Good program?" he asked politely, noticing that they had barely looked up.

"The best. You're just in time. Your dad is about to serve up some lazy ass flambé," Santana commented, glancing at Adam and drawing his attention to the screen where Chef Gordon Ramsay was spluttering with outrage, his face turning an interesting shade of puce as he prepared to launch a slew of insults over some infraction committed by the nervous-looking group of culinary contestants before him.

Shaking his head at the comment, Adam asked Kurt, "Do you mind if I get a glass of water? That long train ride has left me feeling parched."

"Good idea," Kurt said, hurrying to the kitchen with enough haste to suggest that he was thankful for the momentary diversion. "I'll have one too."

"Could you be a dear and make me some tea?" Rachel called absently. "Green tea, hot, with …"

"Lemon and just a single squeeze of honey," Kurt said with her. "I know, Rachel. Santana, you want anything?"

She just shook her head, attention fixed gleefully on the on-screen tirade.

Humming softly to himself, Kurt reached into the cabinet above the sink for two tall glasses, a cup with a gold star design and a sturdy mug that had "Bitches Love Me" printed on one side. Adam watched with fascination as his boyfriend put a small pan of milk on to heat and then grabbed the tea-kettle and filled it from a pitcher of purified water in the refrigerator. He paused to fill the two glasses with ice and more water before putting the pitcher back in the fridge, then popped a sachet of tea leaves into Rachel's cup with one hand while turning the kettle on and flipping the power switch for the espresso maker (he had snagged it for $25.00 at a local café's going-out-of-business sale, an accomplishment he was still quite proud of) with the other hand.

Kurt next added a scoopful of dark roast coffee beans from a tin tucked behind the fridge to the small coffee grinder next to it and then stirred the milk while he waited for it to grind what Adam estimated to be about a dozen ounces worth of coffee. The beans came out beautifully ground to the consistency of coarse sugar, which Kurt skimmed flat and tamped down expertly into the portable espresso filter before placing it and some of the not yet boiling water into the appropriate areas of the machine, placing Santana's cup under the spout to receive the resultant double-shot.

"You've done this before," Adam observed as Kurt tested the temperature of the milk with a small kitchen thermometer, shook his head and gave the pan another stir.

He smiled. "Did I never mention that I spent my last summer in Lima working at a coffee shop? I kind of hated it but it did teach me how to prep multiple drinks in a hurry. It's been a year now but I guess the skills stick with you."

The kettle began to sing just as Kurt was testing the milk temperature again, and as it appeared to meet his standards this time, he deftly poured some water into Rachel's cup and milk into Santana's, adding honey and lemon to the former and a squirt of chocolate syrup to the latter, giving the second drink a vigorous stir before adding a bit more milk, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

"I thought she didn't want anything," Adam commented quietly.

Kurt grinned. "You'll see."

Moments later, Kurt having cleaned everything up with swiftness and thoroughness that Adam found impressive, each man was carrying a cold glass for himself and a steaming cup for one of the ladies into the living room. Adam handed Rachel her tea to an absent, "Thanks," then waited to see what would happen with Kurt, who was holding the coffee cup just out of sight.

"Well, damn, you could have at least offered me something!" Santana griped, her red-glossed lips lowering into a pout. The show was on a break and apparently she was unaware that she had turned down a drink already.

Kurt silently presented the coffee cup and Santana blinked, took a sip and said, "Either that joint on Fire Island makes better coffee than I remember, or you're thinking about trying out for this show."

Only someone who knew her very well would pick up on the slight sheepishness in her tacit apology.

The four of them sat and sipped in amiable silence for the last few minutes of "Master Chef", watching the harried home cooks dash about like frightened chickens, each hoping he or she was not about to find their head on the proverbial chopping block. Kurt waited until the ax had fallen upon this week's unlucky hopeful and the girls had hashed out their opinions on the result, then he turned off the TV and said with practiced nonchalance, "So, Adam and I had an interesting morning."

Santana pulled her legs up to sit cross-legged on the couch, her eyes brightening as she sensed gossip. "Oh?"

"We went for a walk on Broadway to check out the new playbills and guess who we ran into?"

A gasp filled the room as Rachel interjected, "Did you meet Barbra? Or Bernadette? Oh! Was it Patti LuPone? I met her once, you know, at the Brown Derby the first time we were in New York. She saw my star quality right away and told me to never give up on my dream, which I haven't of course, even if my talents haven't been properly appreciated yet. I remember when…"

"It wasn't Patti LuPone!" Adam cut in loudly, feeling as though he'd stepped into a gale force wind without a warning. "Good lord, woman. Take a breath and let the man speak."

Rachel gaped at him, never having heard the always polite Adam be so blunt before. Santana cackled approvingly into her cup and offered him a fist-bump.

A quiet sigh left Kurt. "Thank you. What I was trying to say is that we ran into April Rhodes."

Santana snorted dismissively, immediately losing interest, while Rachel managed to produce a vaguely polite smile.

Plunging forward in spite of the disappointing reaction, Kurt said, "You know how she had amazing success with her first show?"

"Total fluke," Santana said.

"I doubt that. I saw the show and it was excellent," Adam told her. "Turned me into a true fan. It was a huge shock to discover that she and Kurt were friends."

"Well, more like friendly acquaintances," Kurt corrected with a smile, "but I've kept track of her off and on since she left Ohio; mostly off since she kind of vanished after her big Tony win last year. Anyway, the point is that she remembered me and since Adam is a big fan, she insisted on taking us both to lunch at the Rosewood."

"Whoa, that place is like five star fancy. We're talking a serious outlay of cash to eat there," Santana said, eyes gleaming with sudden approval. "If you score another free meal with Madame Big Bucks, be sure to get me an invite."

Kurt just huffed at the demand. "She told us that she's been working on a new show."

"A new show?" Rachel repeated, leaning forward and suddenly taking on the scary intense look that rarely meant good things for anyone around her. "What show? Is it casting? What's it about?"

Kurt looked nervously at Adam, who took over the narrative. "Apparently the plot is rather loosely based on her high school days in show-choir. April is the glee club director and she's dating the sports coach whose star player is part of her choir. The boy is her brother and he's firmly in the closet, not realizing that the best mate and fellow choir student he's in love with is secretly in love with him as well."

Unable to hold the news back any longer, Kurt burst back in. "They're casting it right now and April wants me to play the brother and for Adam to play the best friend. She took us down to the theater she's working at and had us audition for the director, and producer, and some other guy, and we sang a couple of songs and read a scene from the script. They told us they'd be in touch, so who knows if anything will actually come of it, but if they liked me then I might actually have a chance to play a romantic lead in a real Broadway show. Me and Adam both!"

The girls stared at him in stunned silence for a moment. "Seriously?" Santana said at last. "You expect us to believe that you actually spent this afternoon trying out for a Broadway musical where you'd be playing a shorter Finn Hudson."

"No, I … oh. Well I hadn't really thought of it like that, but I guess I would be. Sort of," Kurt replied with a surprised laugh.

"Finn's not gay," Rachel felt obliged to point out.

Santana wrinkled her nose scornfully. "Having slept with the guy, I can't say that I'm totally convinced. The point here is that while you and I sat here on our asses watching TV all day, our overachieving roommate was spending his first free weekend in, like, a month auditioning for 'Glee Club on Broadway'."

Abruptly, she burst into a loud cackling fit of laughter. Kurt's eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms defensively over his chest. "What's so funny about that?"

"Oh, come on. Think about it!" she said. "You, on a professional stage getting paid to play a singing, dancing football player. If this works out, it'll be a big, fat, public fuck-you to all the jocks that used to throw you around as punishment for not being just like them. It's too good! Let me know if you get the part, Twinkles, because I am personally going to fly back to Ohio and announce the news over the McKinley P.A., then go down to the locker room to watch all the jocks shit themselves."

Looking bemused, as if he was not sure whether to take her words as a compliment or an insult, Kurt ventured, "Thanks?"

Rachel smiled, but it looked more pained than proud. "Well. I'm very happy for you. It's great that you put yourself out there and got some experience in real-world auditioning. My advice is just to remember everything about today so that you'll be able to figure out everything you did wrong, and do better the next time."

"Erm, Rachel … he hasn't failed to get _this_ role. Neither of us has yet. We're just on the potential waiting list for a call-back," Adam reminded her.

"Oh, yes, of course you are," she said, patting his arm in a patronizing manner that set Adam's teeth on edge. "But really, you _are_ a little old to be playing a high school student, Adam, and Kurt isn't anyone's idea of a jock. Don't feel bad when nothing happens. I mean, no one gets cast on their very first audition. Look at me! I've tried out for _three_ different shows now."

The silent 'and if I couldn't make it, what chance do you have' was very clear.

She went back to the television menu to search for another program, clearly feeling that they had discussed the matter as much as was needed. Santana gave them a slightly sympathetic lift of one shoulder but did not disagree with her roommate. Turning away from them, she grabbed the remote out of Rachel's hand and snapped, "Oh no you don't, Barbra Jr. It's my turn to pick."

Dismissed and demoralized, Kurt stood from the sofa and walked away, Adam silently following.


	6. Interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is basically just a sex scene, so you can skip if that bothers you.

"Don't worry about them, love," Adam said when they were safely hidden by the privacy curtain in Kurt's small bedroom area. "We stand just as much chance as anyone else of being cast. We just have to wait and see what happens."

"I know," Kurt said in a small voice, sitting heavily on the bed and leaning into Adam's shoulder when he sat down next to him. "I guess I just let myself hope that my best friends might actually believe I stood a chance."

Sliding an arm around his shoulders, Adam kissed Kurt's hair. "Well, I still believe you do. I think we both do. A little stage makeup could work wonders on this old phiz and nobody who saw you perform this afternoon would ever dare to doubt you."

Lifting his downcast face, Kurt smiled and kissed his boyfriend's waiting lips. "Thanks. And just for the record, you do not look old. You could totally pass for a high school kid. My friend Puck looked older than you do when he was only seventeen. Although, to paraphrase Indiana Jones, in his case it probably wasn't the years as much as the mileage."

Adam laughed. "What do you suppose it would have been like if I had come to the States a few years earlier and we'd met at your high school? Would we have hit it off?"

Peppering a few more kisses over the smile-lines around his lips, Kurt said, "Hard to say. Emotionally speaking, there's a lot more difference between fifteen and eighteen than there is between nineteen and twenty-two. Plus, assuming you'd still been a theater geek and a glee club fan back then, you'd have spent most of your time dodging advances from the creepy pedophile that used to teach them. Odds are you'd never have noticed me."

Adam's eyebrows had raised high at Kurt's casual description of McKinley's former glee teacher, but lowered again into a frown when Kurt dismissed himself from consideration. "I don't know about that. I'd have still had eyes and ears."

A cute blush colored Kurt's cheekbones. "I wasn't exactly putting myself out to be noticed in those days. I also looked about twelve years old. Remind me to show you my freshman yearbook some time."

"Well, I find it hard to believe that you were ever anything but gorgeous. I'm convinced I would have noticed you straight away."

He gave a self-deprecating snort. "You might not have had a choice. If you'd been a senior at McKinley when I was a freshman, I probably would have been following you around like a love-sick puppy. Gay guys, especially out and proud ones, are still an extremely rare and unfortunately endangered species at that school. I think I may have been the first one ever. Plus, subtlety wasn't my strong suit in those days. Just ask Finn."

Adam kissed Kurt's face generously, his hands sliding down to slip under the edge of Kurt's light summer shirt to caress his smooth skin. "Well, I can't speak for the oblivious straight lads, but I would absolutely have been flattered. In fact, I would have been sorely tempted to fail a few courses and let myself be held back a year just to have the repeat pleasure of seeing you every day. It would have been worth the trouble, I assure you."

A pleased grunt escaped Kurt's lips when Adam dipped lower to nibble his neck, his hands moving higher to draw arousing patterns on the flesh of Kurt's waist and chest.

"You're ridiculous," he breathed, lifting the hem of Adam's t-shirt to get at some skin of his own, "but it's a really sweet thought. If a guy like you had thought I was worth any kind of trouble when I was fifteen, I'd have been over the moon."

"Well then, perhaps I had better start making up for lost time, because this seems quite like heaven to me," Adam purred, having successfully unbuttoned Kurt's shirt and pushed the silky material from his body. His hands returned to Kurt's sides, sliding up and reaching out to tease the other man's pert pink nipples with the pads of his thumbs. Kurt gasped and instinctively pulled him closer. "Like that, hmm?"

Kurt was normally too modest to make love where there was a good chance of being overheard, but today the combination of excitement, adrenaline and, just perhaps a need to punish his roommates for their reaction to his news, spurred him forward. Kurt practically clawed Adam's shirt free of his body and lay back, pulling Adam down on top of him and kissing him passionately.

"Oh, my," Adam murmured. "You definitely liked that. Noted for future reference."

A muffled laugh escaped through their pressed lips as Kurt kissed him again. "You know what I'd like even more?" he said archly.

"Tell me," Adam replied, smiling down into his darkened blue irises.

Hands sliding low to tease beneath the edge of the slightly-too-tight waistband of Adam's jeans, Kurt said, "I'd like to get these off so we could do this." He thrust up again, managing to swivel his hips a little and drawing a pleased groan from his partner.

Kurt nudged Adam's body up a bit so that he could unfasten Adam's jeans and his own navy shorts and push the constricting garments down their thighs. Glancing down, he raised a surprised eyebrow. "No underwear today, Mr. Crawford?" he teased. "My, my, how daring."

Adam blushed. "It may be a few days past time to do the laundry," he admitted, moaning softly into Kurt's neck when his boyfriend started to stroke him, applying just enough pressure to be tantalizing.

Hands shaking a bit in eagerness, Adam pressed one knee to the bed and levered himself off Kurt, straightening to wriggle out of his jeans and shoes and to pull Kurt's blue boxer-briefs free. Kurt had already kicked his shoes away and as the final garment left his body; he pulled his feet up onto the mattress and shifted higher so that his legs were no longer dangling over the edge of the mattress.

With a teasing smile, he made grabby hands at Adam, who happily rejoined him. For several minutes, the two lovers kissed and rutted gently against each other, then Adam began kissing his way down Kurt's chest. He licked lightly at both nipples before moving down to the belly button, poking his tongue inside the tiny indent and drawing an involuntary squeak from Kurt.

"That tickles!" he protested, trying to shoo him away.

Adam flashed him a wicked grin, giving the sensitive navel another quick tease before nibbling his way over Kurt's hip bones, hands massaging his strong inner thighs and encouraging them to part wider.

Kurt gasped and squeezed his eyes shut when Adam laved his tongue over the newly exposed flesh, fingers combing through Adam's hair and silently urging him to continue.

Happy to obey the directive, Adam concentrated on the area for several minutes before taking the rosy head of Kurt's cock into his mouth. He sucked gently, in no hurry to move on as he slowly traced the defined ridges and veins and lightly lapped at the resultant beads of moisture.

"Oh, fuck," Kurt whispered, gripping the blankets tightly with one hand, the other massaging Adam's scalp in rhythm with the sinful motions of his tongue.

Freeing his lips to speak, Adam continued to stroke his boyfriend with his fingertips. "So, let's just say that you had the opportunity to do anything you liked with me right now. Because to be perfectly frank, you do. What would be your first choice?"

Kurt stared at him, his usual quick thought processes dimmed by the sensual haze he was in as he dreamily responded, "Sex."

Adam laughed, working up a little extra spit before licking it over Kurt's cock, making the head glisten wetly. "I'm afraid you'll have to be a little more specific, darling."

"Oh," he replied with a slightly embarrassed laugh. Kurt considered the matter for a moment. "Have you ever thought about … I mean would you be into, um, sitting in my lap? I mean, you know … riding me?" Kurt said, whispering the final two words as if afraid someone would overhear, his face going red as he made demonstrative gestures with his hands.

Adam's cock had gone a little soft while he concentrated on giving his boyfriend pleasure, but he now experienced a blood-rush so strong and sudden that it made him gasp. They had only been in a proper relationship for a couple of months and up to now their bedroom adventures had been pretty tame stuff. Kurt clearly enjoyed sex, but he was timid about trying new things. He and his ex-boyfriend had both been raw beginners when they got together and as high school boys with vigilant parents, Adam supposed they had not had much time or opportunity to explore their options. As a result, Kurt often seemed leery of making suggestions, as if he feared that Adam might be scornful of his relative inexperience.

"Would you enjoy having me do that?" Adam said evenly, wanting to be sure that Kurt was not just suggesting something new because he felt pressured to be more adventurous.

Kurt nodded, his expression shy but his eyes sparkling with intrigue. "It sounds really sexy. I haven't done it that way before but I've kind of always wanted to try it. With you. Is that all right?"

"It sounds more than all right. In fact, I would absolutely love to go for a ride," he teased back, grinning at his boyfriend and taking a careful nibble at the soft skin of Kurt's stomach just because he knew that attention to that sensitive area particularly turned him on. Then he hefted himself to his knees and bent sideways to reach in Kurt's nightstand drawer for a bottle of high-grade lubricant – Kurt hated the cheap stuff – and a condom, both of which he deftly applied to his partner. Dangling the open bottle, he smiled and asked, "Would you care to do the honors?"

Relieved by his obvious willingness, Kurt nodded and motioned Adam onto his hands and knees. After a few minutes of gentle preparation, Kurt sat back against the pillows, setting the bottle aside and giving his thighs a cute little pat of invitation.

Adam accepted without hesitation and took the opportunity for an intense kiss, both hands cupping Kurt's jaw line as he tried to convey his appreciation without words.

Bracing himself, Adam guided himself downward, drawing in deep steady breaths to keep him relaxed as he pressed Kurt's rigid length deep inside his body. He moved steadily, afraid that Kurt might mistake any hesitation for him changing his mind. His boyfriend was an impressively endowed fellow, so taking him in quickly burned a bit, but it felt beautifully intimate to become joined this way, staring into those wonderful ocean eyes and feeling Kurt's warm hands gliding over his skin and keeping him centered.

"Are you okay?" Kurt murmured when Adam was fully seated in his lap, his hands unconsciously possessive around Adam's waist.

"I'm wonderful," Adam reassured, kissing him tenderly, then placing his hands on Kurt's shoulders for balance and lifting a few inches before pushing back down again. God, that felt intense from this angle, but oh so good.

Kurt's fingers slid down to provide helpful leverage, pulling his knees up a bit so he could brace his feet and thrust gently when Adam lowered. Both men grunted in satisfaction at the improved contact.

Leaning forward, Adam wrapped his arms around Kurt and began to kiss him, grunting into his mouth when the shift brought Kurt's cock into perfect alignment with his prostate. Kurt felt the difference as well and attempted to go faster. It was not easy from his current position but he was persistent and Adam very much appreciated the effort as little ripples of pleasure coursed through his body.

It was embarrassing how quickly Adam reached his climax once additional stimulation from Kurt's hand was tossed into the mix, but Kurt grinned, looking quite proud of himself when he felt hot drops begin to spread over his fingers. Adam clenched, trying to help Kurt along, but he quickly realized that his thighs were quivering like jelly in the post-orgasmic rush. Having a boyfriend with gratifying stamina in bed was normally a wonderful thing, but at this particular moment it could prove to be a problem.

"Love, I can't keep this up," he admitted, stilling his increasingly erratic shifting. "I have an idea."

Carefully, Adam lifted himself out of Kurt's lap, wincing a little at the protest from his overworked thighs. Turning around, he got onto his hands and knees, looking over his shoulder and hitching his eyebrows playfully as he wiggled his bum in the air.

A flash of pure lust lit Kurt's eyes as he accepted the offer, scrambling up onto his knees and petting a hand down Adam's spine as he lined himself up and pushed back inside. A sound of mutual appreciation escaped at being rejoined and Kurt's hips immediately started rolling and massaging Adam's entrance with deep, sure thrusts. His earlier apprehension had vanished and he moved with confidence, doing his best to provide additional pleasure for his boyfriend even as he took his own.

"Fuck, why didn't we try this sooner?" Adam felt Kurt's rhythm falter, changing from long easy strokes to short erratic snaps, and knew that he was close. He pushed back harder, coaxing Kurt toward completion.

"Got me," Kurt panted. He groaned loudly, forgetting all about their potential audience in the living room. "Oh, Adam, just like that. I'm almost … yeah … oh, shit."

He bucked his hips with tiny convulsive pumps. Adam smiled at listening to Kurt, who was normally so polite in his speech, mutter a series of blissed-out invectives as a powerful orgasm finally washed over him.

A minute or so later, Kurt sighed and curled forward, pressing his forehead against Adam's broad back. "Wow. If anyone had told me a couple of years ago that I would feel like this after doing that, I wouldn't have believed them."

Adam laughed softly, pulling forward so that Kurt's softening member could slip free of his body, then turned around and helpfully disposed of the used condom before he gathered Kurt into his arms, tugging him down to relax against the pillows. He kissed Kurt gently and asked, "Are you feeling better now, darling?"

"Mmm," he agreed sleepily, snuggling into Adam's embrace, wrapping around his body like a happy little koala. "Screw the others. This was the best day ever."

Adam kissed his hair. "Hear, hear. Frankly, I can't think of anything that could make this day any better. Can you?"

Kurt replied with a snore, making Adam laugh, though he managed to stifle the sound for his boyfriend's sake.

"Except for a good kip," he agreed, placing one final kiss on Kurt's forehead. "You're as wise as you are beautiful." He tugged a blanket clumsily over their exposed bodies and then he too drifted off to sleep.


	7. Divas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, Rachel does not come off well in this chapter.

The intended nap turned into full out slumber, neither man coming anywhere near waking up until just after midnight, when Kurt's bladder awakened him. He peered around the dark room in surprise, noting the time on his digital bedside clock and hoping to hell that neither of his roommates had stuck her head in to check on them. Especially Santana. She would have taken pictures … and probably posted them somewhere embarrassing.

He tried to free himself from Adam's embrace without waking him, but it was no use. They had switched positions at some point and he was currently being used as a body pillow, one of Adam's legs draped across his thighs and Adam's arm pinning his waist firmly to the bed.

The need to relieve himself was growing increasingly urgent and Kurt knew he had no choice. "Adam," he whispered, poking him in the shoulder. "Adam, wake up."

"Nnhph," Adam replied intelligently, nuzzling his nose deeper into Kurt's chest. It was cute but not exactly helpful.

Grabbing one muscular shoulder, Kurt shook it. "Adam!" he hissed sharply.

With a snort that would have provoked teasing under any other circumstances, Adam mumbled a hopeful sounding, "Biscuit?"

"No, honey," he said patiently. "I need you to let me out of bed. Then you can go back to sleep and dream about eating all the cookies you want."

"Nnnh," he grunted sleepily, trying to hug Kurt tighter, "cuddles."

Kurt could not help laughing. "I'd love to, but not right now. I need to get up. We may have gotten more adventurous today but I don't think either of us is ready to try water sports."

It took a moment, but something seemed to have gotten through. Adam lifted his head, squinting at him in the dim illumination from the clock. "What?"

"I need to pee. Let me up," Kurt said bluntly.

"Oh, right, sure," he grunted, extricating his limbs and allowing Kurt to stand.

Kurt managed by some miracle to locate his abandoned shorts on the floor, tugging them on with minimal fumbling before sprinting out of his room and across the apartment to the bathroom. He took care of his personal business with a sigh of relief, taking his time about washing up when he remembered that he had not done so earlier.

A squeak of surprise escaped his lips a few minutes later when he opened the door and almost ran straight into his still naked boyfriend, who was shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot, his expression pained.

"You planted the idea and it wouldn't leave," Adam explained, darting past him and nearly slamming the bathroom door in Kurt's face in his haste.

Kurt clapped a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing at the abrupt sound of liquid striking porcelain. "You could have just come in you know," he called softly through the closed door, shuffling toward the kitchen with a deep yawn, muttering, "It's not like you haven't already seen everything."

Smiling to himself, Kurt decided to visit the refrigerator before heading back to bed. There was leftover Chinese food in there and the dinner he had missed earlier had his stomach scolding his neglect.

Adam was probably starving too. Well, there should be enough for two and a little midnight snack never hurt anyone.

~*~*~*~*~

Fortunately for Kurt, his roommates had apparently been oblivious to his and Adam's private performance. They said nothing about it at any rate, and no photographs or humiliating Facebook posts appeared.

After waiting anxiously for three days with no word from April, the aspiring actor's hopes began to fade. Adam had not heard anything either. It was hard, but sometimes a person just had to face reality.

Kurt comforted himself with the thought that it was only his first attempt and there would be plenty of other auditions in his future. He just wished that Rachel would stop looking so self-righteous every time she caught him checking his messages to no avail. At least she had managed to refrain from rushing down to the theater to audition for the show herself. Kurt was not sure whether she was being gracious or if it was simply the fact that she did not like April Rhodes. His bet was on the latter.

Santana made no comment, but occasionally glanced at him with a pitying look that rankled in Kurt's soul. It made him feel like a child who has told his parents that he asked Santa to bring him a pony for Christmas.

When he came home from classes on Tuesday afternoon, therefore, Santana nearly gave him heart failure by launching herself out of her chair and into his arms, giddily dancing him around the room like a crazy person.

"Holy shit!" she bellowed, literally ringing the rafters with the volume of her shout. "I can't fucking believe you didn't tell me!"

Prying himself out of her boa-constrictor embrace, Kurt took a desperate breath and said, "What the hell are you talking about? Tell you what?"

"That you made it, you dumb-ass. I don't even know why I'm surprised. The Mexican third eye doesn't lie and it told me something big was about to happen. Even though I'm jealous as fuck, I'm also seriously stoked. Wait'll I tell Brittany. She totally predicted this would happen."

There was more but the rest was spoken in a flood of Spanish that he didn't understand a word of.

"Not that I don't appreciate the support," he broke in, "but what exactly are we talking about here?"

Startled, Santana paused and said, "You seriously don't know? I thought they'd probably called you at school."

"Damn," he exclaimed; eyes going wide as he began digging through his satchel for his forgotten phone. "I had vocal performance class today and cells have to be shut all the way off, no exceptions. I was talking to someone when I left class and forgot all about it."

Sure enough, there were three missed messages on Kurt's voicemail. The booming voice of the casting director he had met on Saturday was first, congratulating him on winning the role of Ronnie Stone and giving him directions on where and when to appear to go over his casting contract. Next was the excited babble of April Rhodes, gushing praise and ordering him to call her back. The last call was the giddy voice of his boyfriend telling him that Adam had been cast as Vince and asking if Kurt had heard anything about his own role.

"Oh my God," Kurt said softly, utter disbelief filling him. He looked at the still beaming Santana and said again louder, "Oh my God!"

"So?" she prompted, even though she clearly already knew.

He laughed, voice high with disbelieving joy. "I got the part. So did Adam. Holy shit … Santana, I'm going to be on Broadway!"

Santana hugged him again, receiving a full return on her investment this time. Kurt could not stop laughing and soon he too was dancing and whooping and screaming along with his friend, basking in the unexpected warmth of her reaction.

"What's going on?" Rachel's voice cut through the celebration. They had not even heard her come in but the two roommates each grabbed her by the hand and dragged her into their party. She laughed brightly and pranced along, not needing to know the reason to enjoy the result.

"I made it, Rachel," Kurt said finally as they stumbled to a breathless halt and all three collapsed. "I just got the call. I'm going to be on Broadway next season!"

Her smiling face froze. "You … you got a callback?" she said at last, her voice small and a little disbelieving.

"No, he didn't get a callback," Santana contradicted triumphantly. "He got the part. It's right there on the answering machine, plain as day. Congratulations Mister Hummel, we were so impressed with your audition that we've unanimously decided to offer you the role in our upcoming production of "Not So New Jersey."

Kurt, having missed that last part due to his shock over the content of his messages, stared at her. "They changed the name?"

She stared back. "I don't know. That's what the message says. Did they?"

"Yeah, that's … April came up with that as a song title after hearing Adam's accent. I didn't know she liked it enough to use it for the show's title."

"Well, if that's not a sign that she's serious about casting you guys, I don't know what could be."

Rachel's oddly inflectionless voice cut in again. "Adam was cast too? No callbacks, no debate, no chorus roles. Just two lead roles going to two complete unknowns. Because you happened to be in the right place at the right time, and you know the star."

Not liking her insinuation, Santana sniped, "That got 'em the chance to try out, and you know damn well that either of us would have done the same in their place. They had to audition just like everybody else."

Rachel stood up and marched into the kitchen, rinsing out a tea cup with near-violent energy.

Following her, Santana rested her back against the counter and crossed her arms with a raised eyebrow. "Problem?"

"No," Rachel snapped, but her denial lasted less than a minute. Slamming the cup down so hard that a small chip of porcelain went flying, she hissed, "Why him?"

"Excuse me?"

She repeated, "Why him? Why either of them? Why do I have to try and try, only to fall just short of the finish line when I'm more talented than either of them? I'm supposed to be the star. I'm the one who got the lead in everything. Kurt was just a background player!"

She was getting louder and Santana tried to shut her up, glancing over her shoulder at Kurt, but Rachel had forgotten all about whispering, her strident voice ringing through the large apartment.

"When he auditioned to play opposite me in West Side Story, he got laughed right off the stage! They only gave him the pity role of the policeman because they felt guilty that he'd raised most of the money for the production. And now, two years later he just happens to get a major part in a Broadway musical handed to him without so much as a call-back? It's not fair! Why do I constantly have to suffer the humiliation of failure while he gets everything handed to him?"

Santana was eyeing Rachel like a cockroach she'd like to squash, while poor Kurt inched a few steps closer, his expression absolutely devastated. Not even pausing to think about it, Santana slapped her still ranting roommate across the face.

Rachel went abruptly silent, hand flying to her injured cheek. Her eyes were round with shock. Kurt likewise stared open-mouthed at the surprise violence.

"Hysteria," Santana commented calmly. Her laser like gaze fixed on the teary Rachel. "And that had better be the explanation for what you just said. I mean seriously, _he_ gets everything handed to him? Kurt Hummel. The guy who never got any chances back in Ohio that he didn't have to work his ass off for, and even then rarely got a reward. Lady Hummel was the poster boy for Schuester's deaf, dumb and blind act and you know it. After that first year, even Mike "the Asian mute" Chang got more to do."

"But, I…" Rachel started.

" _You_ got every solo handed to you. _You_ fucked up your big moment and had to beg, whine and bribe your way into college. _Kurt_ was the one who had a great audition and still had to try out twice and work his way into NYADA through sheer talent. And if you're going to bring up the fuckery that was "West Side Story", maybe you'd also like to remember who had to fight Mercedes for the lead. The only reason you got it over her was that Beiste and Artie were acting like a pair of prejudiced assholes during casting. It wouldn't have even been a fight if they weren't too afraid to cast a woman of color in a traditionally white lead. Playing a Puerto Rican, I might add!"

"It's…" Rachel tried again.

Santana, however, was on a roll. "They cast you and Blaine because they thought you looked the part. If they'd been serious about double-casting you and Mercedes for Maria, they would have also double cast the Tony part and let the audience make up its own mind who was better. As it was, Kurt still got glowing reviews for his ten minutes a night playing Krupke. Not as good as mine, naturally, but more than decent. Even Jacob ben Israel gave him a personal thumbs-up, and they hate each other. Kurt got this opportunity because he's just as talented as either of us, plus he's stubborn, and weirdly optimistic, and he doesn't go around stabbing his friends in the back every chance he gets. Karma may be a bitch, but this time she's finally his bitch."

The dramatic waterworks had officially started halfway through this critique but as Rachel looked around the room, she found no pity in the eyes of her audience. Santana was seething and Kurt still looked at though he'd been kicked in the stomach.

"You know, Rachel," Santana concluded, her voice suddenly quiet and intense, "Kurt would have been the first one popping champagne if either of us were in his place."

The quiet rebuke had Rachel's face turning red and her large wet eyes turning to Kurt. "I … I know. I'm sorry. I am happy for you. It's just that I …"

"You thought you'd get there first while I stood by and supported you from the sidelines," he finished, his words soft and lacking inflection, showing just how deeply they hurt. "That one day you'd become famous enough to drop the right name in the right ear and I could play one of your chorus-boys or something. Because I'm only your sidekick and that's the way it was supposed to be. Right?"

Her mouth opened, then closed, not able to deny it and not quite knowing what to say to make herself look better.

Realizing there was little to be gained by staying here, Kurt gave Santana a small, disbelieving smile, unsure what to make of her surprise defense of him and said quietly, "Thanks." Then he turned away, adding, "I think I'm going to go stay with Adam for a few days."

The silence left in the wake of his exit was deafening.


	8. Getting Underway

A few weeks later, rehearsals were underway and Kurt was still spending most of his free time at Adam's apartment. Both of them found it very convenient for running dialogue, practicing songs and brainstorming ideas, and they both relished the extra time that they got to spend together, delighted to discover that they were fully compatible in both prosaic and romantic situations.

Things had not improved much between Kurt and Rachel, neither able to find a new way back to one another over the pain and resentment of the bridge that Rachel's cruel words had burned.

Kurt's relationship with his roommates had shifted. Santana, for all her usual prickliness, was happiest when she had someone to take care of. She missed Brittany for many reasons, but one of them was the pleasure of having someone to focus the nurturing and supportive side of her nature on. Once she had spoken up on Kurt's behalf, she saw no reason to deny herself and had abruptly become the fiercest and most loyal friend that Kurt ever could have asked for. She had recently started a new job and had begun hinting rather unsubtly that she was making enough money to cover half the rent, should Kurt feel the need to make his current situation more permanent. He could not quite make up his mind if she was giving him and Adam her blessing, or trying to boot him out in order to get her hands on his slightly roomier bedroom space.

He and Adam were flourishing in the professional atmosphere of live theater. April had cleverly roped them both into additional behind the scenes work, Kurt as her apprentice playwright and Adam in writing new songs for the show. April seemed to delight in employing their expanding talents, promising each of them a credit in the final program, as well as contacting NYADA personally and making certain both young men would receive internship credit for the project. (This also meant that she did not have to pay them for the extra services, a concession that Kurt and Adam both felt was more than worth it.)

Adam loved song writing, confirming his true calling in creating melodies, lyrics, and arrangements for his fellow cast mates. The work credit to his Master's program allowed Adam to take the autumn semester off to devote full attention to his new endeavor.

Kurt had likewise worked hard to finish his freshman year at NYADA just in time for rehearsals to begin. Everything seemed to be falling into place at last. His boss at Vogue had transferred Kurt's job title from office intern to 'junior online consultant', a move that allowed him to be put on the official payroll but contribute when and where he was able to find time. Isabelle had been quite firm in her determination not to lose him to Broadway, encouraging Kurt to chase both of his dreams and promising with a smile and a warm hug to be there to watch him shine on opening night.

Burt Hummel had been nearly as thrilled as his son when Kurt broke the big news over a Skype chat. He may not have fully understood the appeal, but he definitely understood just how much this opportunity meant to Kurt after a lifetime of watching his son live and breathe musicals. Enacting a firm promise to save him a good seat for opening night had been his way of emphasizing his support.

Carole and Finn were equally proud, and Kurt had to laugh even as his heart swelled will love to learn from Carole that he was being touted as a 'famous Broadway dude' to anyone willing to listen to his very excited step-brother.

Adam's parents had also been thrilled to receive the big news. They were already looking into the details of a holiday in New York and had made Adam promise to let them know the moment the show had a firm opening date, fully determined to experience their baby boy's shining moment in person.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite co-stars!" April hooted, sneaking up behind Kurt and Adam as they took a water break following an exhausting dance rehearsal and slapping each of them on the ass. "I've got some amazing news for you boys!"

"News?" Adam asked politely.

She grinned. "Pauline has been so pleased with what we've done so far that she approved my request to add a few more voices to the choir and a few more tight butts to fill out the football uniforms. I've told her that I know the perfect place to find them." She posed dramatically and said, "What award-winning singer/actress/playwright/songsmith do you suppose is going to be giving a performance seminar at a certain New York Academy of Dramatic Art as part of their fall orientation day this coming Tuesday?"

Kurt let out a gasp, clasping his hands in excitement. "Oh, April, that's fantastic! The students will be so excited. Did you clear it with the Dean?"

She wrinkled her nose playfully. "Ol' tight ass Tibideaux? Phhpt … she didn't think I was stuffed shirt enough for a classy place like NYADA." She paused, gesturing toward the bulging expanse of her bustier-clad bosom as if to emphasize what a silly idea that was. Kurt and Adam both had to bite their lips not to laugh. "But she and her board of directors toppled like a stack of dominos when I offered to give their school a free full-page ad in the program. They only want to advertise so that they can find more kids to turn down, if you ask me."

Adam chuckled. "I hate to say it, but that is entirely possible. Still, the fact that you've cast two of their students in major roles does say good things for the program."

She grinned. "That's what I figured. Catching flies with honey is the best way if you ask me!"

April tottered away with a wave of her ever-present bottle of "water", shrieking directions at a couple of girls who were standing next to the piano. In moments, all the girls had gathered around her to practice one of April's big production numbers featuring her character on lead and all the female students as supporting singers and dancers.

"She's amazing," Adam mused, cocking his head as he listened to the intricate harmonies being produced by the girls. "You wouldn't really expect it from someone who comes across like Jack Sparrow in stilettos, but she really knows what she's doing."

Kurt laughed at the description. "She's always been like that. The first time we met her in Mr. Shue's choir room, we all thought that bringing her in to join our group was a huge joke, but then she sang a rendition of "Maybe This Time" that literally brought me to tears. When she's focused on performing, she's absolutely a star."

Adam nodded. "Yes, but look at the way she handles her choir. Everyone has something to do, a clearly defined job that lets each one of them shine in his or her own right even while melding seamlessly into the ensemble. That's a gift I wish I possessed." He shook his head. "I've always worried about seeming too dictatorial with the Apples. I want everyone to be heard and have a voice, but I never realized until now how poorly I may have been delegating responsibility."

"Well, I haven't been an Apple for very long," Kurt said, squeezing his shoulders in a half-hug, "but as a veteran of both a seriously rigid acapella group, and the craziest most free-form show choir you ever saw in your life, I can honestly say that you strike a pretty even balance between the two."

"Thank you, darling. I needed to hear that. Mister Winters shouted at me this morning for not feeling my character enough, I misspoke three lines of my introductory monologue, and my latest song writing attempt isn't going well at all." He sighed. "I'm beginning to lose faith in myself."

Kurt turned him gently, taking both of Adam's hands in his and looking him straight in the eye. "I think you don't give yourself enough credit. Maybe you just need to take a step back and give yourself some room to breathe. You've been working like crazy to get everything ready for the deadline that Pauline set for tech and previews. Trust me, if I hadn't come from a group that considers writing original songs twenty four hours before a competition to be normal behavior, I'd be nervous too. I still can't believe that April is going to try and get an entire Broadway show off the ground from casting to curtain within a few months. That's completely insane."

"And yet here we are caught up in the madness right along with her," Adam laughed, his usual sunny attitude returning. "Your script improvements helped things a great deal."

"Not that much," Kurt countered, shrugging off the generous words. "I just offered a few suggestions to get around the rough spots. I felt like I had to, considering that I was inspired to try play-writing in the first place because of April's success with her first show."

Adam looked surprised. "Did you? You never told me that."

"I thought I had. Oh, well you see _Cross Rhodes_ was in prep the first time I came to New York and I felt that if someone like April, who was never even expected to make it out of Lima, could do something so amazing then maybe it was possible for me too." He smiled. "I tried to follow in her footsteps with a play about Pippa Middleton."

Adam chuckled, no stranger to his boyfriend's adorable obsession with the British royal family. "I'm sure it was brilliant."

Kurt smiled, shaking his head. "I thought it was pretty good at the time. I just don't think I really have the knack for playwriting, or the interest if I'm honest about it. I mean, making up little scenes and funny dialogue is a lot of fun, but it just doesn't make me feel alive the way standing under a spotlight and singing does."

Adam nodded. "I know precisely what you mean. I feel more of a thrill hearing my fellow players sing one of my original compositions than I ever have from performing myself. As for you, there's no doubt in my mind that this is where you belong. You absolutely bloom whenever you get into character, to the point that it's disconcerting sometimes to be looking straight into your eyes and not seeing you."

Kurt blushed. "Do you really mean that?"

"I certainly do," Adam said seriously. "And I'm not the only one. When we were practicing over at your place the other night, Santana remarked on it and I'm certain Rachel noticed as well. I suspect that's why she's been so standoffish lately. You have a gift for this, my dear, and there's no more hiding your light under a bushel."

At the mention of his roommates, Kurt's good mood faded a bit. The unhappiness suddenly shining in his eyes prompted Adam to shift closer and put an arm around him, supportively rubbing his back

"I'm not sure I believe you," Kurt said, "but it's nice to know that you feel that way. Santana's been a sort of a pod-person ever since the day she argued with Rachel, so friendly and supportive that it's kind of creeping me out. She and Rachel have never been all that impressed by my talents before and we've known each other as both comrades and competitors for years. I keep feeling as if I'm being lured toward some sort of trap that I can't see, even though my eyes are wide open."

Adam did not try to buoy him up with words, just tugging Kurt closer so that he could wrap both arms around him and hold him tight. It killed him that his loving and loyal boyfriend suffered through so much self-doubt and that he had received so much emotional mistreatment from other people, including those who were meant to be his dearest friends, that he could not accept simple praise without looking for an ulterior motive. So Adam just held him, offering his own support for as long as it was needed.


	9. April in NYADA

April Rhodes was, much to the undisguised horror of observing staff members like Dean Carmen Tibideaux, a smash hit with the students of NYADA. She made no bones about the fact that she had not even graduated high school, much less gone to a "fancy-schmancy" performing arts college and that she was not the least bit ashamed of that fact.

"Every human being you'll ever meet is different in some way from the gal or fella next to them," April was saying, striding back and forth across the stage of the lecture hall she had been given for her presentation. "You gotta get out there, put in the hard work, and show off every little thing you've got that makes you special and unique. Because sooner or later, somebody is going to recognize that what makes you different is what makes you perfect for them! You have something that sets you apart, and if you don't know what that is yet, then find it. Nurture it! Take the god-given opportunity you've got in front of you right now and make the most of it."

There was some cheering from the assembled student body that earned them a glare from the dean and a beaming smile from their guest.

"Now, I'm not putting down this place one little bit, don't you think I am!" April continued. "You have got a great opportunity in front of you to get the best training in the world. None of you would be here if you weren't considered to have more talent in your pinkie fingers than most people have in their whole bodies, and the instructors here know it. It's their job to whittle artists out of the clay and make you the best you can be, but you can't do that by imitating whoever came before you. Be yourself, be different! Don't look down on those who don't fit in easily, or those who don't have your kind of opportunity. No sirree! If you close your eyes to those around you, you'll just miss a lot of great people and bump into a lot of walls. You're looking at a gal who came from a little town in western Ohio and spent the better part of fifteen years drifting, always knowing that I wanted to be on stage but never having the least idea how to get there, or even believing that I deserved a chance to try."

Her smiled turned soft and a far away look filled her big blue eyes.

"Lucky for me, an old friend stepped in and convinced me I should give those dreams another shot. He told me that I did deserve to be recognized, and that it wasn't too late. So I came here to New York City and I worked my butt off to get my first script read. Then one day, it happened! A lot of it was pure luck, I'm not denying that!" She smiled, leaning forward as if to tell them a secret, and the students automatically leaned toward her in response. "But a lot of it was also real talent. All I needed was somebody to give me a chance to show what I could do, and as soon as I got that chance I ran with it and pretty soon I found myself with a genuine hit on my hands. So now it's time for me to pass the torch. To give back a little taste of the gift that was given to me."

She waited a few beats, then gestured to the side of the stage where her actors were waiting. Kurt and Adam stepped out, giving smiles to the audience when the students unexpectedly cheered at the sight of them.

April continued, "As you obviously know, these two cuties are students here at NYADA. Kurt Hummel and Adam Crawford represent two different divisions of the curriculum here. Kurt is a musical theater major. Adam is in the composition group. They're also part of a show-choir that fits that unique and special thing I was just talking about to a T." She gestured up and down their bodies, like she was showing off the fine features of a new car to a prospective buyer. "They came to me and auditioned, and they landed themselves great roles in my brand new show. These boys got out and took a chance and it paid off. And once I heard where they received their training, I knew I needed to get my tuchus down here and rustle up a few more of y'all to fill out the background roles in my new show!"

A babble of giddy chatter rose up. The rumor had preceded her arrival, naturally, but having it so blatantly confirmed was something else.

April held up her hand for quiet. "All right, all right, I know you're excited, but you should be aware that the pay ain't worth quitting your day job over. In fact, you'll be working for credit instead of cash unless we assign you a speaking role. The dean's office has already agreed to give participation credit to anyone we end up hiring and it'll look great on your resume. Especially if we happen to end up with another Tony!"

That was more than enough for the students of NYADA, a large portion of whom were being supported by parental savings rather than jobs anyway.

April clapped her hands and grinned. She loved every moment of this. "To provide a little further incentive, my friends and I are going to give you a demonstration. You lucky people are about to be the first audience anywhere to hear a number from the new April Rhodes musical extravaganza, "Not So New Jersey", coming soon to a theater near you. Take it away, boys!"

Off stage, a piano began to play. The song April had chosen was one that in the show was sung by April's character, Amy, and the full choir. She had scaled it down to a trio, not difficult since there were only a few featured vocalists in the full number, and had Kurt take over the higher lines that were normally sung by the choir's women while Adam's deeper voice sang the men's.

It was a funny, fast-paced song and the NYADA audience ate it up like candy, applauding vigorously for the performers once they were finished. Even Madame Tibideaux gave a grudging ovation, favoring them with a slight upward bend of her stiff lips. April beamed and waved like a pageant queen, while the boys grinned at each other and took their bows.

"Sign ups are being posted outside," April shouted, her voice sailing clearly over the din. "Hope to see you soon!"

The plan worked like a charm. Over fifty students, a huge percentage considering the limited NYADA student body, signed up to audition. Most of the Apples signed up and much to Adam's delight, a decent percentage of them made the cut. April wanted her fictional choir to be eclectic and memorable to an audience and the Apples fit that bill precisely. It hurt nothing that they were all top notch performers. They were NYADA students, after all, and Adam had not recruited them only for their quirky personalities.

Rachel Berry was also among those auditioning. Her second year at NYADA was not starting out well. The privileged attitude and casual discipline in certain classes that had set her apart as "one to watch" the previous year, were now working against her. Word had spread that Rachel had not only dropped out of appearing in a directorial student's final project last year, necessitating recasting, reshooting and nearly missing a deadline because Rachel had refused to do a prearranged topless scene, but that she had also disdained an actual understudy role on Broadway. Having driven a wedge in her friendship with her two roommates, Rachel was suddenly finding life pretty lonely, and April's speech about finding a place for your own unique self had gone straight to her heart, so she swallowed her pride and tried out for the ensemble.

As a member of the extension program, Santana had been eligible to sign up as well but she opted out, telling her curious roommates, "I came to New York to make my way forward, not to step back to high school again. Even if it's only pretend, I'd feel like I was repeating history."

Santana had recently taken a job with a troupe of cabaret performers recommended by one of her fellow dance students. She loved every minute of it, and was truly flourishing in the sultry nightclub atmosphere and intimate spotlight performances. Kurt understood this, so though he was somewhat disappointed, he could not begrudge her decision.

He was a bit less comfortable when Rachel won a chorus role, realizing that his unique opportunity to shine would now, once again, be shared with her. In the past, that had never worked out well for him.

"She's only been working for two days and she's already managed to slip in suggestions for increasing her role three different times," he griped to Adam. "Belinda got a frog in her throat during the scene where I break the news about being in love with you and started coughing. Rachel immediately brought up strep-throat and flu and plague, and then oh so casually suggested that Bee really should have an understudy to take over, just in case she was too sick to perform on opening night."

Adam snorted. They were sprawled on the sofa in Adam's apartment, taking a well deserved break from rehearsing a new scene April had added today between their characters. "You can't possibly be surprised by that."

Kurt sighed heavily, tucking his head more comfortably into Adam's shoulder and stroking his fingers over the other man's bare chest. The weather was surprisingly warm for October in New York and who were they to waste the opportunity?

"I'm not really. She was just so humble when she told me she was trying out for the chorus that I totally let her sweet talk me into thinking she had changed, just like I always do. Now I'm afraid it's going to come back to bite me in the ass."

"Just like it always does," Adam chorused with him. This was not the first time he had heard this lament. "Kurt, you can't let yourself be distracted by worrying about Rachel. As long as you keep doing as well as you've been so far, there's no reason to fret. April saw something special in you and it made her want to give you a chance. Jack fought for you to get this part against the doubts of his partners. They believe in you and so do I. This is an opportunity you've waited your entire life to have. Don't let Rachel's attempts to garner more spotlight pull you away from making the most of yours."

Staring up into his earnest eyes, Kurt blinked back tears. There was not a single smidgen of doubt in Adam's gaze. He believed every word he was saying. "I don't deserve you," Kurt declared, smiling and giving him a soft kiss on the jaw.

Adam smiled and pecked his forehead. "I rather like to think we deserve each other. You know, as a reward for being such kind, handsome, clever chaps."

As he had clearly intended, the remark made Kurt laugh. Kissing him more intently, Kurt ran a hand over the tempting expanse of Adam's toned abs. "You know what? We've memorized our new scene forward and backward by now. I think we deserve a chance to relax."

"Oh, I agree. And it's much too hot in here for you to be so terribly overdressed," Adam said, plucking playfully at the light material of Kurt's trousers. "What do you say we indulge in a nice cool bath?"

Kurt's grin turned slightly wicked. "That sounds like fun. Will you let me play with your rubber ducky?"

Adam's hips bucked up suggestively. "Quack, quack."

Amidst a mutual fit of the giggles, the two men rolled off the sofa and headed for Adam's small bathroom. All thoughts of work and difficult friends entirely forgotten.


	10. Opening Night

Show prep was moving along at breakneck speed. The final draft of the script and the rest of the songs were finished by Christmas. Jack Winters proved to have a strong hand and little patience for show-boating, but fortunately he also had a knack for drawing the best out of every performer and the cast was soon flourishing under his careful direction.

It would be a lie to say that everything ran as smoothly as silk. They were young, highly passionate creative people, and more than a few bursts of temper and tears livened things up from week to week. Luckily, however, the newly hired NYADA student actors were used to a difficult and demanding schedule filled with deadlines and high expectations. That discipline turned them into a troupe who could count on one another and work well together, even when stresses ran high.

Adam was delighted when two of his compositions ended up making the final cut, practically floating on air the week he found out. The chosen songs were a light hearted duet between April's character and her football coach boyfriend, and a heart-felt ballad performed by the girl playing Kurt's girlfriend. (Rachel had been unsuccessful in her efforts to take over that part.) The song was to be sung as a counterpoint to the title ballad that April had written for the two boys.

"Not So New Jersey" was undoubtedly going to be the show-stopper of the play. It was first performed as a solo by Adam, angrily, resignedly, then wistfully as he came to terms with the idea that his friend could never return his romantic feelings. It was reprised in the second act by Kurt, who sang it with an air of disbelief, fear, and longing as he came to accept that he was in love with Vince. There was a final reprise at the end of the show when the two boys sang it together as a duet, pouring their hearts out to one another following their surprise victory at show choir Nationals.

Every time Kurt and Adam sang this particular song, other members of the ensemble drew to them like a magnet. They filled the song with life; particularly the duet, for both knew exactly how their characters felt from real life experience. Kurt knew what it was to long for someone who wanted only to be his friend and Adam had been in the position of unrequited lover on a sad number of occasions. They also knew what it was to find true and triumphant love, the sweet moment when a friend becomes something more, having lived out that experience together.

Even Kurt's roommates could not deny the chemistry, or the talent that their friend displayed. Kurt was taking his opportunity to learn from the best at NYADA seriously, knowing exactly how rare and precious it was. He had thrown himself into the program and already learned a great deal about how to develop and broaden his natural timbre, inflections, and body language, developing a talent for slipping into other personas that had made him the darling of his acting teachers.

A few weeks later, following a frantic scramble to get sets, props, costumes and performances up to speed by the early spring opening date, everything had miraculously come together and the show was ready for its big debut.

Adam and Kurt stood in the wings on opening night. Newspaper and other media critics had been invited to attend the "tech" shows two weeks ago while the final bugs were worked out; giving them a chance to write reviews that would hopefully whet the appetites of potential theater-goers.

Glancing out at the sizable opening night crowd, Kurt felt a thrill of pure anticipation. With the stage lights still dark, he could see the audience and it was both thrilling and utterly terrifying to realize that they would be playing to a full house.

He could not believe that he, Kurt Hummel, was about to have the chance to put his best foot forward and prove to an audience that he could play a romantic role just as well as any other guy. Butterflies fluttered through his stomach. He had a lot riding on this night, but the pressure just filled him with deeper determination to do well.

Kurt looked at his boyfriend, wanting to share the moment, and noticed for the first time that through his heavy stage makeup Adam had gone white to the lips.

It had become fairly obvious through the last few weeks of rehearsals and technical performances that Adam was not nearly as comfortable in the spotlight as Kurt was. Performing a scene in front of his peers at school or goofing around as the leader of the Apples, who rarely performed in public due to the disdain they received from fellow students, was a far different experience than speaking and singing in front of a huge audience who had paid for the honor.

Even after April had written him a funny speech to explain to the audience how a boy with such a distinctive English accent had wound up in a high school just off the Jersey shore, Adam tended to be a bit stiff. He came to life whenever he was acting opposite Kurt, and Kurt had just assumed that his boyfriend was experiencing a bit of stage-fright otherwise. He had been confident that it would wear off by the time the production began for real.

Now he was no longer so sure. Poor Adam looked as if he was going to be sick.

"Are you okay?" he whispered.

"I feel as though I'm about to vomit," Adam confirmed, the words drifting over his barely open lips on a shamed breath. "I don't think I can do this, Kurt."

A combination of worry for his boyfriend, panic for the fate of opening night, and exasperation that Adam would only confess to feeling this way now washed over Kurt, making his tone sharper than he intended as he said, "Should we tell April to call up your understudy?"

Adam looked startled at the note of exasperation audible in the question. "My understudy?"

"All I mean is that if you aren't feeling well, maybe you should go find Tim and ask him to take over for tonight. You can still go on tomorrow."

"So you'd rather perform with _Tim_?" Adam said, snarling out his fellow actor's name like an epithet even though he truly liked the other man. 

Kurt opened his mouth to shoot back a rude retort, when out of the corner of his eye he happened to catch sight of Rachel Berry. She was waiting in the wings at the opposite side of the stage, grinning and bouncing on her toes like a little girl. She was clearly excited to be here, about to make her official debut on a real Broadway stage. Her previous hurt feelings and reluctance to be a mere chorus girl were nowhere in evidence tonight. A dream she had carried since she a toddler was about to come true.

The desire to pick a fight faded as Kurt watched her, feeling an incredible surge of affection toward his old friend. Another peek out at the audience revealed that Rachel was staring straight at her proudly beaming fathers.

Scanning the crowd, Kurt spotted his own dad's shiny head bowed close to Carole's reddish-blonde bob out in the fourth row. He wondered if they might be reading the little bio the theater had written about him. Kurt had not had time to pick them up from the airport before his call time, but he had spoken to his dad briefly and Burt had proudly announced his intention to take copies of the program back for everyone they knew in Lima.

Seated next to his parents was Finn, beaming proudly and craning his neck as if hoping to spot his friends behind the curtain. He whispered something to his seat-mate and Kurt realized that it was Mercedes. She had not even told him she was coming tonight! Santana sat a few rows behind them with a couple of local friends, whispering happily with a visiting Brittany. In fact, scattered throughout the theater, many members of Kurt's New Directions family had come to see the show. He could see Blaine and Sam about halfway back, grinning at whatever they were saying to each other. Blaine was bouncing a little in his seat in his eagerness for the show to begin. Nearer the front where the wheelchair access area was, Artie was intensely studying a program.

In other seats, he found Will and Emma Schuester, with Isabelle and Chase from work sitting right behind them. Mister Shue looked proud enough to burst the buttons right off his vest and Kurt knew that at least some of that pride had to be for him, though it was likely that April and Rachel were responsible for a good portion as well. And up in the second balcony, Kurt would _swear_ that he had seen a flash of blond hair above a bright red track suit.

So many people. So much love and support. Things so much more important than a silly spotlight.

Surprising his still-frowning boyfriend, Kurt looped an arm through Adam's and pointed out his family. "See that couple in the fourth row with the tall guy right next to them? That's my dad, step-mom and brother, and my friend Mercedes next to Finn. They came all this way to support me tonight."

Adam's tense facial muscles relaxed and he pointed in turn. "I'm glad. That's my dad and mum sitting just there."

Kurt smiled. Santana's jokes about Adam being the son of celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay appeared to have no bearing on real life. Adam looked very much like his blonde, sweetly-smiling mother, while Adam's father was a robust man with thinning gray hair, thick glasses and a beard. The happily smiling gentleman was the stereotype image of a literature professor, which is exactly what he happened to be.

"They flew all the way from Essex to be here for me," Adam said softly. "Their flight was delayed and I didn't think they'd make it in time, but Mum texted their arrival just a few minutes ago. I'm happy they've made it but I've been nervous as a three tailed cat ever since I read the message. What if I'm terrible, or my songs are rubbish, or I forget my lines. They sacrificed so much to get me here. What if I let them down, Kurt?"

Kurt squeezed his hand as he uttered that last whispered question, realizing now where Adam's sudden bout of ill-temper had come from. The same place as his own. As much as he was taking comfort in the support of his own loved ones, having so many of them here tonight was definitely adding to the build up of nerves. "You won't let them down. _We_ won't let them down. Adam, I'm nervous too."

Adam's expression softened, some of his tension fading away. "Thanks for telling me. I'm not usually such a reactionary, but terror has a strange way of altering one's behaviors. I'm not really jealous of Tim, and I don't really want him to go on for me."

"I don't either. We're quite a pair, aren't we?" Kurt laughed. "Oh, and I'm also sorry if I've been talking too much and making your nerves worse today. Everyone hates it when I get obsessive, but sometimes I just can't help myself. It's a pressure release. I start small and then it gets worse, and I don't even notice how bad it is until somebody smacks me in the head with a bag of coffee."

Adam laughed. "Well, I hope no one has ever gone that far!"

"Santana."

"Ah."

Kurt continued. "I want you to know that I'm here for you tonight, Adam, as much you're here for me. I want to watch the audience fall in love with you and your songs, and I want us both to have the night of our lives. Even if the show turns out to be a bomb, let's have one really great night to remember." He reached out and clasped one of Adam's hands in both of his. "Just think of it, tonight Kurt Hummel and Adam Crawford are real live Broadway stars."

"It still feels unreal every time I think about where we are," Adam agreed with a quick peck of Kurt's lips. "And I'm going to be fine so how about we just say, break a leg?"

Kurt smiled back and nodded. "Break a leg."

They were interrupted by Rachel, who scurried up to them and grabbed their elbows. Kurt jumped. He had not even seen her move from her position across the way.

"There you two are. April sent me to come find you. You're going to miss the show circle!"

Following an impulse, Kurt bent down and gave her a hug. After a moment of surprise, Rachel returned it, holding him as tightly as she possibly could. A lot of apologies, understanding and forgiveness flowed through that gesture, even though not a word was spoken.

As they broke apart, Rachel laughed and dabbed at her eyes carefully. "You're going to make me ruin my makeup before I even get on stage. I see how you are, trying to take out the competition!"

"You caught me."

"Thanks, Kurt," she said with a tremulous smile. "I'm sorry I said all those horrible things before. You didn't deserve them and you totally did deserve to be cast in a lead role. Especially this one. You've been … God, just amazing these last few weeks in rehearsals. Those people would have been fools to cast anyone else. I'm so proud of you."

Swallowing down a surge of emotion, he gave her a single sharp nod of thanks.

"It wouldn't have felt right to go on tonight if we were still mad at each other," she added, looking around the theater with wondering eyes.

"I feel the same way," he agreed.

Then Rachel grimaced. "Besides, Santana threatened to wax my eyebrows off in my sleep tonight if I didn't make things up with you."

They both laughed, knowing it was a potentially genuine threat. Their friend could only take so much dramatic posturing before she lost her temper and took action. It was astonishing that she had been as patient as she had.

"I know this didn't turn out the way you always dreamed it would," Kurt said, "but I'm glad I get to share this experience with you, Rachel."

They smiled at one another and at Adam, who was watching them with an indulgent smile. His chin lifted as the orchestra began warming up in the pit, signaling that it was almost time to begin "We'd better get going," he reminded them.

Taking Adam's hand on one side and Rachel's on the other, Kurt headed back to where April was gathering everyone together. Kurt and Adam shared a warm smile and squeezed each other's hands before taking their place in the show circle.


	11. Life Goes On

Opening night went splendidly. The audience laughed and cried in all the right places, and gave the company a standing ovation that rang the rafters at the end. Following a cast party that had Kurt and Adam both dizzy trying to keep up with all the introductions and congratulations as they met each other's visiting friends and relatives, the couple treated their families to a late night dinner. Since no one felt remotely capable of sleeping, everyone was happy to indulge. The four proud parents beamed with satisfaction as they embarrassed their sons by telling every single waiter, coat checker and unlucky stranger caught in their collective clutches all about their wonderful, talented progeny.

As the weeks went on, audiences continued to be plentiful and appreciative. Critical reception was not perfect, some jaded voices accusing the script of trying too hard to be politically correct, and others not caring for the fact that April, only a sophomore playwright herself, had hired so many student actors to fill out her cast. Most of the reviewers, however, were full of praise and encouragement, calling the show as brave as it was entertaining and singing the actors' praises to the skies.

Much to his delight, Kurt was singled out by many writers for his "promisingly nuanced" debut and he gained much praise for the genuine feeling behind Ronnie's coming out scene. One critic even amusingly questioned whether the producers had been wise to cast a straight actor in such a "brave" role. Kurt felt proud enough to burst when he read that, though he could have done without the added barb saying that his "choice" to give Ronnie a higher speaking voice in order to clue the audience in to his true sexual nature had been an overly clichéd one.

Kurt's loved ones nearly laughed themselves sick when they read that review, and Santana promptly pinned a copy to the bulletin board in the Bushwick loft kitchen for additional savoring.

Adam got some mentions for his performance of the title song, and his chemistry with Kurt was being called "believable" and "winsome", but it was obvious that this taste of fame was not destined to become a full-time pursuit. Adam smiled brighter and celebrated longer over the one review that mentioned the ballad he had written for Belinda than for any mention of his acting. Seeing this, Kurt quietly set aside his favorite daydream of the two of them becoming a Broadway power couple, spending their lives together on stage and off.

By the time summer rolled around, it could not be denied that the show was a genuine hit, but Kurt knew in his heart that Adam would be turning over the role of Vince to another actor as soon as his initial contract was up. Kurt had already made up his mind to extend his own performance for a few more months, but he had wrestled with the decision. On the one hand, he knew that this was the kind of opportunity that would not only establish him in people's minds but possibly provide more opportunities in the future, and that he should hold on to it for as long as he could. On the other hand, he also knew that his dad really wanted him to finish college and that taking a gamble that this show would stand the test of time might be very foolish. (Besides, even if the show did last, how long could anyone believably play a high school student?)

For now, though, things were good and both Kurt and Adam were content with their lives. The future would have to look after itself.

One evening when the show had no performance scheduled, Kurt sat in his favorite chair in Adam's apartment, watching his boyfriend bob his head and silently mouth lyrics as he worked away at his tiny computer desk, writing a new song. A feeling of deep contentment filled Kurt as he watched the other man roll his eyes, squint at the ceiling, ruffle his shaggy blond mane in frustration and then perk up as epiphany struck.

"Is genius burning brightly tonight?" Kurt asked in a light tone when Adam finally sat back in his chair to stretch out his tired back.

Adam looked over at him, a smile bright in his eyes. "For a while I was genuinely on fire, but I think it's safe to say that I'm officially burned out for the evening."

"So, does that mean you'd be willing to take a few hours off to spend with your poor neglected boyfriend?" Kurt continued, making an exaggerated pouty face, then smirking as he stood up and made a show of stretching his own muscles, enjoying the way Adam's gaze instantly fixated on the generous strip of creamy skin revealed between his low cut jeans and untucked shirt. "Or will I be going to bed all alone tonight?"

He flashed a saucy look at Adam and turned, deliberately swinging his hips and humming "U+Ur Hand" as he swayed toward the bedroom.

Adam was at his side in a flash, computer forgotten as he grabbed Kurt around the waist and swung his wildly laughing boyfriend off his feet and all the way around in a circle. "Don't you dare start without me," he whispered in Kurt's ear. Nibbling the edge of the delicate shell, he purred, "How would you feel about going for a nice long ride tonight, my love?"

The laughter faded away, but Kurt was still smiling as he pulled Adam's head forward for a slightly awkward but passionate kiss. They had come a long way in the months since they had first started sleeping together and the suggestion no longer made Kurt blush. Instead it simply revved up the desire he was already feeling. "Love to," he moaned, closing his eyes and cocking his head to one side, encouraging Adam to nip at his long neck.

They continued toward the bedroom, clothes falling along the way. As they fell onto Adam's comfortable bed, Adam looked down into Kurt's eyes and said, "Move in with me. Officially."

For a moment, everything went absolutely still. Kurt stared wide-eyed at Adam. The other man looked as startled to have said the words as Kurt was to hear them. He did not, however, look as if he wanted to take them back. Kurt could see the sincerity in his eyes and he was surprised by the feeling of warm contentment that the suggestion gave him. He could visualize himself sharing a life and home with this man for many happy years.

"We'd need a bigger place," he replied. "Your closet is nowhere near up to the demands of my wardrobe, and since I'm going to be a famous actor and you're going to be a Tony and Grammy winning song writer someday, we'll need a spare room where I can practice lines and songs without driving you crazy while you're trying to work on your music."

Adam blinked, clearly not sure if he was understanding correctly. Then he began to smile. "I think that sounds reasonable. So may I take that as a yes?"

Running his hands over Adam's bare chest, Kurt hummed, "Mmm, I'll think about it. It will take a very long, very detailed examination of the ups and downs of my potential new roomie before I can fully make up my mind." He kissed Adam gently. "I like to consider all the angles before I make a firm decision."

"An excellent plan," Adam said, kissing him back. "One can't be too careful about these things, after all."

As their bodies began to shift, Adam and Kurt lost the thread of their conversation, but each kiss and caress held a new level of tenderness and promise. Happiness swept through them both as they held one another and walked toward a new and exciting future together.

THE END


End file.
